Stargazing in Pasto, Nariño, Colombia

Dark-sky rating for Pasto

Pasto, Nariño, Colombia is a mid-sized city (population about 392,930). A place this size typically has a bright suburban sky: main constellations are easy, the Milky Way is washed out. That is an estimate of Bortle class 5–6 from population, not a measurement: the real value depends on the exact spot you observe from.

For a measured reading at any point, open the live Dark Sky map.

Nearest dark-sky places and observatories

No certified dark-sky place or observatory in our registry lies within 150 km of Pasto. Our list only includes genuine, publicly documented sites, so none is shown rather than guessed.

Milky Way season in Pasto

The bright core of the Milky Way climbs high above the horizon haze. It climbs at least 20° above the horizon during astronomical darkness in February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, peaking in April at about 60°.

• The north celestial pole stands 1.2° above the horizon, so stars within 1° of it never set from here.
• About 51.1% of the whole sky rises above the horizon at some point in the year from this latitude.
• The Milky Way's core in Sagittarius culminates about 59.8° up, clearing the horizon haze comfortably.
• The Large Magellanic Cloud only reaches about 19.1° altitude, so it is a low, seasonal target rather than a year-round one.
• At 2569 m elevation, roughly 26% of the atmosphere's mass is already below you, which measurably reduces extinction near the horizon.

Tonight and aurora

As of October 19, 2026 (UTC) the Moon is a Waxing Gibbous at 60% illumination. Aurora at 1.2° latitude generally needs about Kp 9.0.

Nearby places

• Ibarra, Imbabura, Ecuador
• Pitalito, Huila Department, Colombia
• Popayan, Cauca Department, Colombia