Pembroke Pines Stargazing & Astronomy Report
Light pollution and stargazing locations near Pembroke Pines
- City
- Pembroke Pines
- Country
- United States
- Latitude
- 26.0073
- Longitude
- -80.2962
Key Sky Quality Metrics
- SQM (mag/arcsec²)
- 17.70
- Bortle class
- Class 9 (Class 9)
- Darkness Quotient
- 21%
- Dataset
- March 2026
Inner city sky
Stargazing in Pembroke Pines
Pembroke Pines is a large suburban city in South Florida, part of the wider Miami metropolitan area and closely tied to the region’s dense coastal development.
The city generally experiences High Light Pollution, with a Darkness Quotient of 21% — placing it among the more light-polluted urban locations in the United States.
For practical observing from within the city, the most reliable targets are the Moon, planets, double stars and the brightest open clusters. A few showpiece objects such as Orion Nebula and the brightest globular clusters can be attempted, but faint galaxies, dim nebulae and the Milky Way are overwhelmed by skyglow.
Meaningfully darker skies are not close at hand, and a proper improvement usually means driving well away from the urban corridor. The nearest really strong option is roughly 85 kilometres to the west, near Collier County, Florida, with even darker skies around 90 kilometres to the south-west near Monroe County, Florida.
The map shows South Florida as a broad, intense zone of urban brightness, with the strongest pink-white glow concentrated along the densely populated peninsula and coastal strip. Pembroke Pines sits within that larger luminous area rather than standing apart from it, so the city is part of a continuous belt of artificial skyglow rather than an isolated hotspot.
Away from the city, the colours cool through red, yellow, green and blue before fading towards grey and black, showing that the sky improves most clearly once you get out over less populated areas and open water. The darkest regions on the crop lie mainly to the west and south-west, while the eastern side remains affected by scattered island light domes and coastal glow.
In practical terms, this means Pembroke Pines is brighter than much of its inland and offshore surroundings, but the improvement is gradual at first rather than immediate. The map suggests that escaping the local light dome requires a deliberate journey, after which conditions improve quite sharply.
What the overhead sky is like
Looking straight up from Pembroke Pines, the sky is bright even at the zenith, with an overhead reading of 17.7 SQM. That means the familiar constellations are still there, but they appear against a washed-out background rather than a properly dark sky.
In practice, the brightest stars and the main outline of major seasonal patterns remain visible, while fainter stars drop away quickly. The overall impression is of a strong urban light dome filling much of the sky, not just the horizon, which is why deep-sky observing from within the city is so restricted.
north - poor
About 15 kilometres north of Pembroke Pines, the sky is still poor, at roughly Bortle 8, so local glow remains dominant. Conditions do improve further out, eventually reaching Bortle 4 at around 200 kilometres, but genuinely dark skies are not reached within the sampled range in this direction.
north-north-east - poor
About 15 kilometres to the north-north-east, conditions remain poor at Bortle 9, with very heavy urban skyglow. Dark skies are possible further out, but only after a long journey of around 200 kilometres, where this direction reaches Bortle 2.
north-east - poor
About 15 kilometres to the north-east, the sky is still poor at Bortle 9, so there is little practical gain for casual observing nearby. A much stronger improvement arrives farther out, with Bortle 4 around 100 kilometres away and very dark Bortle 2 skies by around 200 kilometres.
east-north-east - poor
About 15 kilometres east-north-east of the city, the sky remains poor at Bortle 9. This direction improves more convincingly with distance, reaching Bortle 3 at around 100 kilometres.
east - poor
About 15 kilometres east of Pembroke Pines, the sky is still poor at Bortle 9 and heavily washed by local and coastal light. A substantial improvement appears farther out, with Bortle 3 conditions at around 100 kilometres.
east-south-east - poor
About 15 kilometres to the east-south-east, conditions are still poor at Bortle 9, so the city’s light dome remains very strong. Better skies are available farther away, reaching Bortle 3 at around 100 kilometres.
south-east - poor
About 15 kilometres south-east of the city, the sky remains poor at Bortle 9. A worthwhile darkening does develop with distance, with Bortle 3 conditions reached at around 100 kilometres.
south-south-east - poor
About 15 kilometres to the south-south-east, the sky is poor at Bortle 9 and still strongly affected by urban brightness. This direction improves substantially farther out, reaching Bortle 3 at around 100 kilometres.
south - poor
About 15 kilometres south of Pembroke Pines, conditions are still poor at Bortle 9, so only the brightest objects stand out well. The sky gets much better with distance, reaching Bortle 4 at around 100 kilometres and Bortle 2 by around 200 kilometres.
south-south-west - poor
About 15 kilometres to the south-south-west, the sky remains poor at Bortle 9. A major improvement comes only with a substantial drive, reaching Bortle 4 at around 100 kilometres and Bortle 2 farther out at around 200 kilometres.
south-west - poor
About 15 kilometres south-west of the city, the sky is still poor at Bortle 8, though marginally better than many other directions. Stronger dark-sky conditions are available farther out, reaching Bortle 3 at around 100 kilometres.
west-south-west - poor
About 15 kilometres west-south-west, conditions are poor at Bortle 7, but this is one of the more promising bearings for a shorter escape from the brightest glow. The sky improves steadily and reaches Bortle 3 at around 100 kilometres.
west - poor
About 15 kilometres west of Pembroke Pines, the sky is poor at Bortle 7, though it is noticeably better than the brightest coastal directions. Useful improvement comes with more distance, reaching Bortle 4 by around 50 kilometres and Bortle 3 at around 200 kilometres.
west-north-west - poor
About 15 kilometres west-north-west, the sky is poor at Bortle 7, so this is still far from a truly dark horizon. It does improve to Bortle 4 at around 50 kilometres, but genuinely dark skies are not reached within the sampled range in this direction.
north-west - poor
About 15 kilometres north-west of the city, the sky remains poor at Bortle 8. Conditions improve to Bortle 4 at around 100 kilometres, but genuinely dark skies are not reached within the sampled range in this direction.
north-north-west - poor
About 15 kilometres north-north-west, the sky is still poor at Bortle 8. A gradual improvement develops farther out, eventually reaching Bortle 4 at around 200 kilometres, but genuinely dark skies are not reached within the sampled range in this direction.
zenith - poor
Looking straight up from Pembroke Pines, the zenith is poor at Bortle 9, with a bright urban background rather than a dark overhead sky. The main constellations are still recognisable, but the limiting magnitude is restricted and many of the fainter stars that give the sky depth and richness are lost.
-
Near Monroe County, Florida
- Direction
- SW
- Distance (km)
- 91.2
- SQM
- 21.31
- Bortle
- 3
Milky Way visible, broadband DSO imaging
-
Near Collier County, Florida
- Direction
- W
- Distance (km)
- 85.1
- SQM
- 21.17
- Bortle
- 4
Bright nebulae, galaxies, narrowband imaging
-
Near Highlands County, Florida
- Direction
- NNW
- Distance (km)
- 157.3
- SQM
- 20.97
- Bortle
- 4
Bright nebulae, galaxies, narrowband imaging
Genuinely dark skies require a meaningful drive from Pembroke Pines rather than a quick hop out of town.
The nearest good dark-sky option is around 85 kilometres to the west, near Collier County, Florida, where conditions reach Bortle 4, while the best nearby sky is around 90 kilometres to the south-west near Monroe County, Florida, reaching Bortle 3.
Closer to the city, the urban glow lingers stubbornly, so modest short-distance improvements do not translate into truly dark observing conditions.
-
Within 100 km
- Place
- Near Monroe County, Florida
- Direction
- SW
- Distance (km)
- 91.2
- SQM
- 21.31
- Bortle
- 3
-
Within 200 km
- Place
- Near Highlands County, Florida
- Direction
- NNW
- Distance (km)
- 157.3
- SQM
- 20.97
- Bortle
- 4
Long-term light pollution trend
Pembroke Pines has been consistently bright across the full record, with little sign of any sustained darkening. The average reading across 76 datasets is 17.8 SQM, and the observed range is fairly tight, from 17.63 to 18.03 SQM.
The latest value of 17.7 SQM is slightly worse than the earliest reading of 17.81 SQM, which points to a small long-term decline in darkness rather than a dramatic change. The trend slope of -0.0215 SQM per year suggests gradual brightening over time, but against an already heavily light-polluted baseline.
From within Pembroke Pines, urban stargazing is best kept simple and bright-target focused. The Moon, planets and double stars are the most rewarding objects, and the brightest open clusters can still make worthwhile telescope targets.
A handful of showpiece deep-sky objects can be attempted with patience, especially when they are high in the sky, but contrast is the limiting factor. For the Milky Way, faint galaxies, wide nebulae and better meteor watching, a much darker site outside the city makes a dramatic difference.
- Moon
- planets
- double stars
- brightest open clusters
- Orion Nebula (M42)
- brightest globular clusters
- Milky Way
- faint galaxies
- broadband nebulae
- meteor showers
Can you see stars from Pembroke Pines?
Yes — you can still see stars from Pembroke Pines, including the brighter constellations and the more prominent individual stars. What you lose is the faint background population, so the sky looks much thinner and less richly packed than it would from a dark site.
Can you see the Milky Way from Pembroke Pines?
For most observers, no: the Milky Way is effectively washed out by the city’s heavy skyglow. To see it properly, you would want to travel to a much darker location outside the urban area.
What Bortle class is Pembroke Pines?
Pembroke Pines is rated Bortle 9, which is an inner-city level sky. In plain terms, that means severe light pollution and a strong glow across most of the sky.
What is the SQM in Pembroke Pines?
The measured sky brightness is 17.7 SQM. That is a bright night sky by astronomical standards and fits with the city’s very limited deep-sky visibility.
Where are the nearest dark skies to Pembroke Pines?
The nearest strong improvement in the supplied nearby-site data is near Collier County, Florida, about 85.1 kilometres to the west, where conditions reach Bortle 4. An even darker option appears near Monroe County, Florida, about 91.2 kilometres to the south-west, reaching Bortle 3.
Is Pembroke Pines good for astrophotography?
It can work for the Moon, planets and some narrow-field bright targets, but it is not well suited to faint deep-sky astrophotography from within the city. For nebulae, galaxies and wide-field nightscape work, darker skies farther out are much more effective.
How far do you need to drive from Pembroke Pines for darker skies?
For a clear step up in quality, you are generally looking at roughly 85 to 90 kilometres to the west or south-west. That is where the nearby data first shows genuinely useful dark-sky improvement, with Bortle 4 and Bortle 3 conditions.