Aurora tonight
A live answer to the only question that matters: can I see the northern lights from where I am? Built from NOAA's real-time OVATION aurora nowcast, the planetary Kp index, and the Moon — updated every few minutes.
1City by city, right now
Computed from the oval's actual shape at each city's own longitude — the aurora reaches further south over North America than over Europe at the same moment, because the oval is centered on the magnetic pole, not the geographic one.
| City | Latitude | Tonight |
|---|
“Overhead” = inside the oval now. “Northern horizon” = within ~5° south of it — look north, low. Darkness required: aurora is invisible in daylight and washed out by city lights. Southern-hemisphere readers: the same physics applies to aurora australis; this table is northern-city flavored for now.
2The next few nights
| Night (UTC day) | NOAA max Kp | What that means |
|---|
From NOAA's official 3-day geomagnetic forecast. A CME already in flight can beat the forecast — check the tracker's inbound banner.
3How to actually see it
- Get dark. Away from city lights; give your eyes 10–15 minutes to adapt.
- Look north, low. Unless you're inside the oval, the show sits on the northern horizon.
- Use your phone. Night mode, 3–10 second exposure — the camera sees pinks and purples your eyes can't. Many "invisible" auroras photograph beautifully.
- Mind the Moon. A bright moon washes out faint displays (tonight's moonlight is shown above).
- Be patient. Activity comes in substorms — quiet for an hour, then ten minutes of glory. Check back; conditions swing fast.
Where does the aurora come from in the first place? Watch the storms travel from the Sun on the live tracker, or read the science.
4Put this on your site
A live aurora widget (iframe, no scripts) is available alongside the map and numbers widgets — grab a snippet at Embed CME Tracker.