Northern Lights tonight in Williston, ND

Tonight in Williston

Williston sits at a geomagnetic latitude of 55.8° N, so the aurora usually needs a Kp index of about 4 or higher before it rises above the northern horizon. Tonight's NOAA forecast peaks at Kp 3 (quiet) during the dark hours, 1.0 short of what Williston needs.

Open-Meteo expects about 0% cloud cover on average between 8 pm and 8 am local time, with 12 of 12 dark hours mostly clear (30% cloud or less).

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, low on the horizon, from somewhere away from street lights.

Right now NOAA's OVATION model gives up to 0% chance of aurora in the part of the sky visible from Williston. OVATION is a short-range nowcast (30 to 90 minutes ahead), useful for deciding whether to step outside now.

3-day Kp forecast

None of the next 3 days reaches the Kp 4 that Williston 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 Williston needs Kp 4

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 North American cities see aurora further south than European cities at the same latitude. At Kp 0 the oval's edge is near 66° geomagnetic; each step of Kp pushes it roughly 2° toward the equator.

At 55.8° geomagnetic, Williston needs about Kp 4 for aurora low on the horizon, Kp 6 or more for a display high in the sky. Regina, 266 km away, needs about Kp 3.

Aurora forecast for nearby cities

• Northern lights Minot
• Northern lights Bismarck
• Northern lights Regina
• Northern lights Moose Jaw
• Northern lights Brandon, MB
• Northern lights Billings
• Northern lights Gillette
• Northern lights Rapid City

More sky and weather

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