Stargaze Atlas

Colorado dark-sky map — light pollution by town

61 towns rated · darkest: Pueblo West · measured from VIIRS 2024 satellite night-lights

Colorado has 61 towns rated for light pollution here, from its darkest — Pueblo West (Bortle 4) — to its brightest city cores, with 1 rating as genuinely dark or rural sky (Bortle 4 or better). Every town is listed with the nearest measurably darker town to drive to. It also holds 13 certified International Dark Sky Places, listed below with the nearest rated town to each. Ratings are a VIIRS satellite proxy, not survey-grade sky-brightness readings.

Statewide Colorado · VIIRS 2024
Towns rated
61

1 rate as genuinely dark or rural sky (about Bortle 4 or better).

Darkest town
Pueblo West
Genuinely dark towns
1
Certified dark-sky places
13

Certified dark-sky places in Colorado

13 sites in Colorado hold an International Dark Sky Place certification — awarded for actively protecting the night sky, not measured from orbit like the town ratings below. What each designation means →

Certified International Dark Sky Places in Colorado.
Place Designation Coordinates Nearest rated town Distance That town's sky
Arches National Park Dark Sky Park 38.728°N, 109.540°W Fruita 53 mi B7
Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park Dark Sky Park 38.580°N, 107.728°W Montrose 11 mi B7
Canyonlands National Park Dark Sky Park 38.167°N, 109.760°W Fruita 88 mi B7
Capulin Volcano National Monument Dark Sky Park 36.783°N, 103.970°W Pueblo 110 mi B7
Dead Horse Point State Park Dark Sky Park 38.506°N, 109.733°W Fruita 70 mi B7
Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument Dark Sky Park 38.914°N, 105.286°W Colorado Springs 26 mi B9
Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve Dark Sky Park 37.834°N, 105.497°W Cañon City 44 mi B7
Mesa Verde National Park Dark Sky Park 37.260°N, 108.494°W Durango 34 mi B7
Naturita Dark Sky Community 38.220°N, 108.567°W Montrose 41 mi B7
Norwood Dark Sky Community 38.131°N, 108.291°W Montrose 33 mi B7
Nucla Dark Sky Community 38.267°N, 108.547°W Montrose 39 mi B7
Silver Cliff Dark Sky Community 38.136°N, 105.439°W Cañon City 24 mi B7
Westcliffe Dark Sky Community 38.133°N, 105.466°W Cañon City 25 mi B7

All Colorado towns by darkness

Darkest sky first, each with the nearest measurably darker town to drive to. Sort or filter below.

Colorado towns, darkest sky first.
Sky Nearest darker sky
Pueblo West 4 Rural / suburban transition 2.4 already the darkest nearby
The Pinery 5 Suburban sky 4.3 Pueblo West — B4, 76 mi
Black Forest 5 Suburban sky 4.9 Pueblo West — B4, 46 mi
Edwards 6 Bright suburban sky 9.7 The Pinery — B5, 100 mi
Castle Pines North 6 Bright suburban sky 10 The Pinery — B5, 9 mi
Security-Widefield 6 Bright suburban sky 11 Black Forest — B5, 18 mi
Greenwood Village 6 Bright suburban sky 12 The Pinery — B5, 16 mi
Frederick 6 Bright suburban sky 13 The Pinery — B5, 46 mi
Johnstown 6 Bright suburban sky 13 The Pinery — B5, 62 mi
Highlands Ranch 6 Bright suburban sky 13 The Pinery — B5, 14 mi
Firestone 6 Bright suburban sky 14 The Pinery — B5, 47 mi
Erie 6 Bright suburban sky 16 The Pinery — B5, 44 mi
Columbine 6 Bright suburban sky 16 The Pinery — B5, 20 mi
Cherry Creek 6 Bright suburban sky 16 The Pinery — B5, 13 mi
Louisville 6 Bright suburban sky 17 The Pinery — B5, 42 mi
Windsor 6 Bright suburban sky 19 The Pinery — B5, 71 mi
Dakota Ridge 6 Bright suburban sky 19 The Pinery — B5, 24 mi
Fountain 6 Bright suburban sky 19 Black Forest — B5, 23 mi
Steamboat Springs 6 Bright suburban sky 20 The Pinery — B5, 130 mi
Fruita 7 Suburban / urban transition 21 Edwards — B6, 120 mi
Evans 7 Suburban / urban transition 23 Johnstown — B6, 12 mi
Clifton 7 Suburban / urban transition 24 Edwards — B6, 105 mi
Greeley 7 Suburban / urban transition 24 Windsor — B6, 11 mi
Lone Tree 7 Suburban / urban transition 25 Cherry Creek — B6, 4 mi
Durango 7 Suburban / urban transition 25 Los Alamos, NM — B6, 130 mi
Superior 7 Suburban / urban transition 25 Louisville — B6, 3 mi
Westminster 7 Suburban / urban transition 25 Louisville — B6, 11 mi
Pueblo 7 Suburban / urban transition 26 Pueblo West — B4, 9 mi
Montrose 7 Suburban / urban transition 26 Edwards — B6, 105 mi
Aurora 7 Suburban / urban transition 28 Cherry Creek — B6, 8 mi
Fort Carson 7 Suburban / urban transition 29 Security-Widefield — B6, 4 mi
Wheat Ridge 7 Suburban / urban transition 30 Dakota Ridge — B6, 11 mi
Arvada 7 Suburban / urban transition 31 Louisville — B6, 12 mi
Berkley 7 Suburban / urban transition 31 Louisville — B6, 13 mi
Fort Morgan 7 Suburban / urban transition 31 Johnstown — B6, 59 mi
Ken Caryl 7 Suburban / urban transition 32 Columbine — B6, 2 mi
Sterling 7 Suburban / urban transition 32 Windsor — B6, 90 mi
Fort Collins 7 Suburban / urban transition 33 Windsor — B6, 12 mi
Sherrelwood 7 Suburban / urban transition 34 Louisville — B6, 12 mi
Castle Rock 7 Suburban / urban transition 35 Castle Pines North — B6, 7 mi
Cañon City 7 Suburban / urban transition 35 Pueblo West — B4, 29 mi
Thornton 7 Suburban / urban transition 35 Louisville — B6, 11 mi
Lafayette 7 Suburban / urban transition 37 Louisville — B6, 3 mi
Lakewood 7 Suburban / urban transition 38 Dakota Ridge — B6, 7 mi
Grand Junction 8 City sky 40 Clifton — B7, 6 mi
Loveland 8 City sky 41 Johnstown — B6, 10 mi
Brighton 8 City sky 41 Frederick — B6, 10 mi
Federal Heights 8 City sky 42 Sherrelwood — B7, 1 mi
Englewood 8 City sky 42 Greenwood Village — B6, 3 mi
Golden 8 City sky 43 Wheat Ridge — B7, 8 mi
Broomfield 8 City sky 44 Louisville — B6, 5 mi
Longmont 8 City sky 46 Erie — B6, 9 mi
Welby 8 City sky 48 Sherrelwood — B7, 2 mi
Littleton 8 City sky 50 Columbine — B6, 3 mi
Boulder 8 City sky 51 Superior — B7, 7 mi
Parker 8 City sky 66 The Pinery — B5, 5 mi
Northglenn 8 City sky 69 Thornton — B7, 2 mi
Commerce City 8 City sky 76 Sherrelwood — B7, 4 mi
Centennial 8 City sky 94 Lone Tree — B7, 2 mi
Colorado Springs 9 Inner-city sky 113 Fort Carson — B7, 7 mi
Denver 9 Inner-city sky 133 Berkley — B7, 5 mi

Frequently asked questions

Where are the darkest skies in Colorado?
The darkest town tracked here is Pueblo West, but the genuinely dark skies in Colorado are its 13 certified International Dark Sky Places — Arches National Park, Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, Canyonlands National Park, Capulin Volcano National Monument and others — listed further down with the nearest rated town to each.
How many dark-sky towns does Colorado have?
Of 61 towns rated here, 1 rate as genuinely dark or rural sky (about Bortle 4 or better) — good for seeing the Milky Way on a clear, moonless night.
How are these light-pollution ratings measured?
From VIIRS 2024 annual-average satellite night-lights, sampled at each town's center and mapped to a darkness class and an estimated Bortle band. It is a satellite upward-radiance proxy for planning, not a survey-grade sky-brightness reading. See the methodology page for details.

Explore

Bortle scale · Meteor showers · Dark-sky map · Search all towns