A great night for stargazing in Lowell, MA

Lowell ranks 310th out of 500 US cities for night-sky darkness, with a darkness index of 64 out of 100. That estimate comes from the population of every community within 150 km, weighted by distance — so what matters is the glow of the whole metro area, not just the city's own size.

That is a bright sky. From the city core expect the Moon, planets and a few dozen of the brightest stars; the Milky Way will not show. Getting out from under the metro's glow is the single biggest improvement available to you.

Head away from major roads and shopping districts, and give your eyes about 20 minutes to fully adapt to the dark — most of what people call "bad seeing" is really just eyes that never adjusted.

Light pollution is the part that does not change night to night. Cloud cover and moonlight do, which is what the forecast above tracks.