Northern Lights in Iceland Tonight
Can you see the northern lights in Iceland? Yes, from anywhere in Iceland. Reykjavík is at magnetic latitude 68.8°, poleward of the aurora oval’s edge even at Kp 0, so the northern lights can come on any dark, clear night. The best time is set by the dark: there is none from May to August, then 7.3 hours a night in mid-September and 15 in mid-December.
Type where you are: the Kp your spot needs, NOAA’s forecast for your dark hours tonight and the next two nights, the moon, and which way to look.
Fairbanks, AK · magnetic latitude 65.7°
You need Kp 0+By NOAA’s rule the aurora’s edge reaches Fairbanks at Kp 0+. Loading NOAA’s forecast for tonight…
- Kp you need
- 0+ overhead
- Look toward
- north-northeast
Kp forecast: NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center. Places: GeoNames.
The forecast above opens on Reykjavík, Capital Region, IS: type your own town, or use your location, for tonight’s answer where you are.
What Kp does Iceland need?
NOAA’s rule: “At Kp = 0, the equator ward edge of the auroral oval is approximately 66 degrees.” “And it moves equatorward about 2 degrees for each level of Kp.” That is in magnetic latitude — NOAA: “This relationship holds true in geomagnetic latitude, not geographic.” — so a town needs a Kp of (66 − its magnetic latitude) ÷ 2. In a big storm the aurora can also be seen from farther away, low on the horizon: NOAA’s storm scale says how low it “has been seen” at Kp 6 to 9.
| Town | Magnetic latitude | Kp overhead | Low on the horizon | Days per 11-year cycle | Look toward |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Akureyri, Northeast, IS | 69.6° | any (0) | – | – | north-northwest |
| Reykjavík, Capital Region, IS | 68.8° | any (0) | – | – | north-northwest |
The farther toward the magnetic pole, the lower the Kp: Akureyri needs the least of these towns and Reykjavík the most. NOAA adds a warning worth keeping: “It should be noted that the relationship between Kp and auroral latitude are approximate and represent averages.”
When is it dark enough in Iceland?
NOAA: “The aurora is not visible during daylight hours.” These are the hours with the Sun 12° or more below the horizon (the end of nautical twilight) on the night after the 15th of each month. Reykjavík has none from May to August. “The best Seasons for aurora watching are around the spring and fall equinoxes.”
| Month | Reykjavík | Akureyri |
|---|---|---|
| January | 14.2 h | 14.5 h |
| February | 11.7 h | 11.8 h |
| March | 8.8 h | 8.5 h |
| April | 4.2 h | 3.5 h |
| May | 0 h | 0 h |
| June | 0 h | 0 h |
| July | 0 h | 0 h |
| August | 0 h | 0 h |
| September | 7.3 h | 7 h |
| October | 10.7 h | 10.7 h |
| November | 13.3 h | 13.7 h |
| December | 15 h | 15.2 h |
Plan it
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- Direct flights to Iceland from the US
- Northern Lights Tonight: the forecast for any town
FAQ
Can you see the northern lights in Iceland?
Yes. Akureyri and Reykjavík are poleward of the aurora oval’s edge even at Kp 0 by NOAA’s rule, so the aurora can come on any dark, clear night. NOAA: “It should be noted that if you are in the right place under the aurora, you can see very nice auroral displays even with low geomagnetic activity (Kp = 3 or 4).”
Can I see the northern lights tonight in Iceland?
Only NOAA’s forecast for tonight can say: the tool at the top of this page reads it for Reykjavík (or your own town) and compares it with what Reykjavík needs: no Kp at all. Look north-northwest, away from city lights; NOAA: “Best aurora is usually within an hour or two of midnight (between 10 PM and 2 AM local time).”
When is the best time to see the northern lights in Iceland?
Not from May to August: Reykjavík has no night dark enough then, and NOAA: “So combining a summer vacation to the arctic with aurora watching usually doesn’t work.” Reykjavík has its longest nights in December (15 hours of darkness). NOAA adds: “The best Seasons for aurora watching are around the spring and fall equinoxes.”
What Kp do you need to see the northern lights in Iceland?
Akureyri, at magnetic latitude 69.6°: none, the edge is poleward of it at Kp 0; Reykjavík, at magnetic latitude 68.8°: none, the edge is poleward of it at Kp 0. The rule is NOAA’s: the oval’s edge is at about 66° magnetic latitude at Kp 0 and moves about 2° toward the equator for each level of Kp.
How these numbers are made
Magnetic latitude is the dipole’s, with the pole from the IGRF-14 coefficients (NOAA NCEI / IAGA). The Kp overhead is NOAA’s rule, “low on the horizon” and the days per cycle are NOAA’s storm scale, and tonight’s Kp in the tool is NOAA’s 3-day forecast. Darkness is the Sun’s position, computed for 2026. Towns: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). Rules checked 2026-09-27.