Astrophotography in Pakistan: Dark Sky Sites from Deosai to the Desert

Pakistan’s big cities are bright and hazy, and from Karachi, Lahore or Islamabad the Milky Way is a rumour. But the country also has the high mountains of Gilgit-Baltistan, and two large deserts in Sindh and Punjab. Between them, a properly dark sky is never more than a long day’s travel away.

There is no DarkSky International certified place in Pakistan yet. This guide covers the places where height or emptiness does the same job.

Deosai National Park, Gilgit-Baltistan

Deosai is a high plateau south-east of Skardu, at about 13,500 feet (around 4,100 metres) according to the Gilgit-Baltistan Forest, Wildlife and Environment Department. It was declared a national park on 14 May 1993, and you reach it from Skardu in the west or from the Astore valley in the north.

At that height you are above much of the water vapour and dust that blur the sky over the plains, and the plateau is wide and open, with the horizon far away on every side.

At 4,100 metres the nights are cold in any month and altitude affects everyone, so pack winter clothing and give yourself a day in Skardu first.

Suits: the Milky Way core over open grassland and lakes, and anyone who wants the darkest sky in the country.

Khunjerab National Park, Upper Hunza

On the border with China in upper Hunza, Khunjerab is a national park among the Karakoram mountains. It is high, cold and sparsely settled, and the same rules apply as on Deosai: warm clothing, time to adjust to the height, and a plan for the drive back in daylight.

Suits: mountain nightscapes, if you combine it with a trip up the Karakoram Highway.

The valleys of Hunza and Skardu

You do not need to go to the highest plateau to get a good sky. Valley towns in Gilgit-Baltistan have little artificial light compared with the plains, and a short walk out of a guest house is often enough for wide-field work with mountains in the foreground.

Mountains block part of the horizon, which matters for the galactic core when it is low in the south. Pick a valley that opens to the south, or climb a little above the valley floor.

Suits: a base for several nights, with good food and a bed.

Thar and Cholistan deserts

In the south and east, the Thar desert in Sindh and the Cholistan desert in Punjab are flat and open. Winter nights there are clear and comfortable, and the horizon is open in every direction, which matters for wide panoramas.

Dust and haze are the limits, especially in spring and early summer. The best nights tend to follow rain or a change of wind.

Suits: winter Milky Way and deep-sky trips within reach of Karachi, Hyderabad or Bahawalpur.

When to go

The north is a summer trip; the deserts are a winter one. Monsoon cloud covers much of the plains in July and August, so plan desert nights for the cool, dry months.

Processing what you bring home

Akastroid stacks and finishes your frames on your own computer, without uploading anything, which helps when a guest house connection in Gilgit-Baltistan is slow. The free download processes three sessions and allows one export, enough to put a Deosai night through from start to finish.

A note on paying, because it is different from most countries: PayPal does not offer accounts in Pakistan. If you buy a licence later, pay by debit or credit card: when PayPal cannot take the payment, the payment window offers a second card checkout.

For a first Milky Way night with only a camera and a tripod, see the Milky Way without a star tracker, and for nights from the city, what to image from a light-polluted sky.