Light-pollution maps
Light Pollution Map, VIIRS maps
They show where it is dark, not whether tonight is worth the drive.
Best stargazing forecast app
Stop checking six apps before deciding whether to drive.
Most stargazing tools solve one slice: dark maps, weather tables, aurora alerts, satellite passes or planetarium views. DarkestHour is built around the final decision: is tonight worth leaving home?
Astronomy weather
Astrospheric, Clear Outside, Clear Sky Chart
They expose cloud/seeing tables, but leave the final trip call to you.
Sky guides
Stellarium, Sky Guide, Night Sky, Sky Tonight
They identify what is overhead, not whether your sky conditions justify leaving home.
Event trackers
NASA Spot the Station, Heavens-Above, My Aurora Forecast
They alert on events, but often ignore local cloud, moon and darkness at the exact window.
DarkestHour should own the decision layer.
The competitor gap is not another map layer. It is synthesis: tell photographers, aurora chasers and casual stargazers whether tonight is worth the fuel, then alert them before rare windows disappear.
One go / wait / save-fuel verdict instead of six separate dashboards.
Cloud, moon, Bortle/SQM, seeing, transparency, aurora and satellite events in one score.
Pro alerts only when conditions align for saved places and nearby better spots.
Plain-English confidence labels so estimated values do not pretend to be precision data.