Northern Lights tonight in Murmansk

Tonight in Murmansk

Murmansk sits at a geomagnetic latitude of 64.9° N, close to the auroral oval itself, so aurora is possible even on quiet nights (Kp 0–1) whenever the sky is dark and clear. Tonight's NOAA forecast peaks at Kp 3 (quiet) during the dark hours, which is enough for Murmansk.

The Moon is 100% illuminated (full moon), bright enough to wash out a faint aurora, so only a stronger display will stand out. For the best view look north and overhead, from somewhere away from street lights.

Right now NOAA's OVATION model gives up to 14% chance of aurora in the part of the sky visible from Murmansk. OVATION is a short-range nowcast (30 to 90 minutes ahead), useful for deciding whether to step outside now.

3-day Kp forecast

3 of the next 3 days reach the Kp 0 that Murmansk needs. Kp is a global 0–9 index of geomagnetic activity, issued in 3-hour blocks (UTC); NOAA forecasts beyond 24 hours are uncertain, because storms are triggered by solar eruptions that take 1–3 days to arrive.

Why Murmansk sees aurora on quiet nights

The aurora forms in an oval around the geomagnetic pole, which sits in the Canadian Arctic (about 80.8° N, 72.8° W), not at the geographic pole. That is why the Kp a city needs depends on its geomagnetic rather than its geographic latitude. At Kp 0 the oval's edge is near 66° geomagnetic; each step of Kp pushes it roughly 2° toward the equator.

At 64.9° geomagnetic, Murmansk lies under the usual position of the auroral oval: on quiet nights the aurora is often overhead, and during strong storms (Kp 5+) the oval can move equatorward past the city, so the display may then be to the south.

Aurora forecast for nearby cities

• Northern lights Rovaniemi
• Northern lights Oulu
• Northern lights Severodvinsk
• Northern lights Tromsø
• Northern lights Arkhangel’sk
• Northern lights Kuopio
• Northern lights Joensuu
• Northern lights Umeå

More sky and weather

• Aurora forecast (all cities)
• Northern Taurids meteor shower
• Meteor showers
• Weather warnings