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Thursday 29 October in Vardø, 15:03

Northern lights in Vardø

In Vardø the aurora can show from about Kp 2.5. Tonight's forecast is Kp 2.3, and right now it is 0.3. Tonight there are 11 hours of proper darkness. It looks best from 23:00 to 01:00, with 23 % cloud cover, so the chance is low. The best of the next seven nights looks like the day after tomorrow.

Chance tonightLowBest 23:00–01:00 · 23 % cloud coverDarkness tonight11 hSunset 14:03Best nightthe day after tomorrowChance: ModerateKp tonight2.3Visible here from Kp 2.5 · now 0.3
Sunrise 07:15Drag through the daySunset 14:03

Vardø and the northern lights

Vardø is a municipality in Finnmark, Norway, with 1,969 inhabitants. The municipal centre lies at 70.4° N, 9 metres above sea level. What counts for the aurora is the magnetic latitude, 66.5° here: under the auroral oval. Here the aurora can show from about Kp 2.5, against Kp 6 in Oslo. Activity was that high in 26% of the hours in 2014–2025.

It gets dark enough for the aurora from 3 September to 8 April, with up to 16 hours of proper darkness a day in midwinter. The polar night, when the sun does not rise, lasts from 24 November to 18 January. Counting the darkness, that makes about 690 hours in a typical year with both darkness and enough activity, most of them in December. The clouds decide how many of them bring an aurora.

Tonight in Vardø, hour by hour

When it is dark enough, how cloudy it is, and the chance each hour from the Kp forecast and the cloud cover. Hours already gone have no forecast.

  1. 18:0044 %
  2. 19:0034 %
  3. 20:0050 %
  4. 21:0044 %
  5. 22:0035 %
  6. 23:0022 %
  7. 00:0023 %
  8. 01:0027 %
  9. 02:0027 %
  10. 03:0033 %
  11. 04:0068 %
  12. 05:0095 %
Dark enoughToo lightHigh chanceModerateLowMoonlight (82 % full) dims a faint auroraBest 23:00–01:00

The next seven nights in Vardø

Darkness, cloud and the chance for each night. The Kp forecast reaches three nights; the dashed nights after rest on NOAA’s long-range outlook and are only a pointer.

  1. tonightLow11 hours darkBest 23:00–01:0023 % cloud coverKp max 2.3
  2. tomorrowLow11 hours darkBest 03:00–05:0078 % cloud coverKp max 5.0
  3. the day after tomorrowModerate11 hours darkBest 19:00–21:0055 % cloud coverKp max 4.5
  4. SundayHigh11 hours darkBest 01:00–03:009 % cloud coverKp about 3.5Rough guess from NOAA’s long-range outlook
  5. MondayLow11 hours darkOvercast all night85 % cloud coverKp about 2.5Rough guess from NOAA’s long-range outlook
  6. TuesdayLow11 hours darkBest 00:00–02:0068 % cloud coverKp about 2.0Rough guess from NOAA’s long-range outlook
  7. WednesdayLow11 hours darkOvercast all night98 % cloud coverKp about 2.5Rough guess from NOAA’s long-range outlook

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The next four weeks, night by night: activity, darkness and moon

  • 30 Oct–1 NovGood conditions · Kp ≈ 5.0 · moon 61 %
  • 16 Nov–18 NovGood conditions · Kp ≈ 4.0 · moon 56 %
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When can you see the northern lights in Vardø?

The aurora needs both darkness and enough activity on the sun. Each column is a day: dark blue is the hours that are dark enough, green those of them when activity has been high enough here, on average 2014–2025.

Best here: December, November and February. Activity peaks around the March and September equinoxes, the nights are longest in midwinter.

  1. 3.5 hJan
  2. 3.5 hFeb
  3. 2.4 hMar
  4. 0 hApr
  5. 0 hMay
  6. 0 hJun
  7. 0 hJul
  8. 0 hAug
  9. 1.7 hSep
  10. 3.4 hOct
  11. 4.0 hNov
  12. 4.3 hDec
Light or twilightDark enough (dark blue and green together)Of those, with enough activity (Kp 2.5 or more), average 2014–2025Best months

Clouds are left out: on average cloud cover varies little from month to month, while it decides each single night. See the forecast above.

Places nearby

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Questions about the northern lights in Vardø

Can I see the northern lights in Vardø today?

In Vardø the aurora can show from about Kp 2.5. Tonight's forecast is Kp 2.3, and right now it is 0.3. Tonight there are 11 hours of proper darkness. It looks best from 23:00 to 01:00, with 23 % cloud cover, so the chance is low. The best of the next seven nights looks like the day after tomorrow.

When is the northern lights season in Vardø?

In Vardø it gets dark enough for the aurora from 3 September to 8 April, with up to 16 hours of proper darkness a day in midwinter. The polar night, when the sun does not rise, lasts from 24 November to 18 January. The best months are December, November and February, going by darkness and activity in 2014–2025.

What Kp do you need to see the northern lights in Vardø?

In Vardø the aurora can show from about Kp 2.5, against Kp 6 in Oslo. Activity was that high in 26% of the hours in 2014–2025. Counting the darkness, that makes about 690 hours in a typical year with both darkness and enough activity, most of them in December. The clouds decide how many of them bring an aurora.

When is it darkest in Vardø?

It is darkest in January, with 16 hours on average per day. The whole year by month: Jan 16 h, Feb 12 h, Mar 8 h, Apr 0 h, May 0 h, Jun 0 h, Jul 0 h, Aug 0 h, Sep 5 h, Oct 11 h, Nov 14 h, Dec 16 h.

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