Tierra del Fuego, Antarctica and South Atlantic Islands Province, ArgentinaMagnetic latitude 41.8°Population 56,8256 m above sea level
Can you see the southern lights in Ushuaia?
From Ushuaia the aurora is too low for the naked eye except in the most extreme storms, but in severe storms (about Kp 7.3 or more) cameras record a red glow low in the south. Strong enough for photos on 51 nights since 1995 — most recently on 12 November 2025.
Right now
Quiet right now (Kp 2.0).
Updates every minute while this page is open.
Tonight in one minute
Not tonight
- Solar activity Too weak: Kp 4.7 expected, 7.3 needed here.
- Sky Partly cloudy (49% cloud) — look for gaps.
- Darkness Dark from 22:00 to 04:33. A bright moon (83%) washes out faint displays.
What to do: Not tonight — your next chance is shown just below.
Thursday 22 October — No · Kp 4.7 · Forecast cloud: 49%. · Reliability: good
Each box is one night: the colour shows the chance, the number the expected Kp. Tap a night for details.
📅 Add these nights to your calendar — it updates itself (.ics)
How far ahead can the northern lights be forecast?
- Minutes to an hour: satellites 1.5 million km away measure the solar wind before it reaches Earth. This is the surest warning — the “Right now” box uses it.
- 1–3 days: when the Sun throws out a cloud of particles, it takes one to three days to arrive. NOAA's 3-hourly forecast covers these nights; the timing can still be off by a few hours.
- 4–27 days: the Sun turns once every 27 days, and regions that disturbed Earth's field last time often do it again. NOAA's 27-day outlook gives this rough trend — new eruptions are not in it yet.
Tonight
Updated 04:36 local time
Unlikely
Best around 04:00. Forecast max Kp 4.7 (this place needs 9+), average cloud 49%.
- Dark enough
- 22:00 – 04:33
- Sunset
- 20:29 · sunrise 06:04
- Moon
- 83% · ↑ 16:14 · ↓ 04:53
- Kp neededKp index: a 0–9 measure of geomagnetic activity. The higher it is, the further from the poles the aurora reaches.
- Kp 9+
- Kp for photos
- In photos: from Kp 7.3 (a red glow low in the south).
- Look towards
- south (174°)
Cloud layers and weather
Low cloud blocks the aurora completely. Thin high cloud often still lets a bright aurora shine through, so a sky with only high cloud is worth a look.
| Time | Thu, 04 | Fri, 00 | Fri, 03 | Fri, 23 | Sat, 02 | Sat, 22 | Sun, 01 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low cloud | 0% | 10% | 5% | 34% | 32% | 11% | 13% |
| Mid cloud | 37% | 50% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 12% | 70% |
| High cloud | 19% | 36% | 0% | 20% | 3% | 12% | 70% |
| Temperature | 3 °C | 4 °C | 4 °C | 6 °C | 5 °C | 8 °C | 7 °C |
| Feels like | 3 °C | 4 °C | 4 °C | 6 °C | 5 °C | 8 °C | 7 °C |
| Wind | 1 m/s | 1 m/s | 1 m/s | 0 m/s | 1 m/s | 1 m/s | 0 m/s |
Cloud layers and weather: Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0).
Clearer skies nearby tonight
Forecast cloud during tonight's darkness: 43% here. The clearest option within 100 km is about 30 km to the north, with 18%. Open in OpenStreetMap
MET Norway forecast at 24 points within 100 km, averaged over the dark hours. Check roads and conditions before driving.
Score = activity (NOAA Kp and OVATION) × clear sky (MET Norway) × darkness × moonlight. Methodology
Weather in Ushuaia
The aurora only shows through clear skies, so the weather matters as much as the Kp index. Here is the general forecast for Ushuaia: temperature, wind and the chance of rain for the coming days.
Planning further ahead? See the hour-by-hour weather forecast for Ushuaia on Atlas of Seasons.
Seeing it right now?
Tell others in Tierra del Fuego, Antarctica and South Atlantic Islands Province. Reports from real visitors move a place up the live ranking.
Reports are anonymous: we do not store your IP address or location. One report per place every few hours.
Live webcams near Ushuaia
Check the sky for yourself: public cameras within 300 km. They open on the camera owner's website.
- Ushuaia ↗ Open the live camera (opens in a new tab) Scenic
- Puerto Williams ↗ Open the live camera (opens in a new tab) Scenic
- Tolhuin, Tierra del Fuego ↗ Open the live camera (opens in a new tab) Scenic
- Punta Arenas ↗ Open the live camera (opens in a new tab) Scenic
These cameras belong to their owners — we only link to them. Most show little in daylight or under cloud, and some pause in summer.
What you would see from Ushuaia
Facing south. Bands show where the aurora sits at two activity levels.
| Kp | What you see | Lower edge | Ray tops | Distance to the aurora |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Below the horizon | -8° | -6° | 2,302 km |
| 3 | Below the horizon | -7° | -4° | 2,079 km |
| 4 | Below the horizon | -5° | -2° | 1,857 km |
| 5 | Below the horizon | -4° | -1° | 1,635 km |
| 6 | Below the horizon | -2° | 2° | 1,412 km |
| 7 | Below the horizon | 0° | 4° | 1,190 km |
| 8 | Faint glow, mostly on camera | 2° | 7° | 967 km |
| 9 | Faint glow, mostly on camera | 5° | 11° | 745 km |
The Kp scale in plain words
Kp is a 0–9 score for how strongly the Earth's magnetic field is being shaken by the solar wind. The higher it goes, the further from the poles the northern lights reach. Kp 0–2 is a quiet night; Kp 5 and above is a geomagnetic storm.
- Kp 0–2 Quiet Only under the auroral oval: northern Norway, Swedish and Finnish Lapland, Iceland, Alaska, northern Canada.
- Kp 3 Unsettled Bright in the Arctic; low on the horizon in central Scandinavia and southern Iceland.
- Kp 4 Active Overhead in the Arctic; low in the north from southern Norway, Sweden, Finland and northern Scotland.
- Kp 5 Minor storm (G1) next 24 h Scotland, southern Scandinavia, the Baltic states, the northern US states and southern Canada.
- Kp 6 Moderate storm (G2) Northern England, Denmark, northern Germany and Poland, the US Midwest — often clearer in photos than to the eye.
- Kp 7 Strong storm (G3) camera in Ushuaia Most of the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, Poland, Czechia; red glow in photos from France and the northern Alps.
- Kp 8 Severe storm (G4) Central Europe to the eye; red sky in photos from northern Italy, Spain, the Balkans and Turkey's Black Sea coast.
- Kp 9 Extreme storm (G5) Seen across Europe and the US; in photos as far south as the Mediterranean, Turkey and North Africa (May 2024).
Light pollution
Suburban sky. Noticeable sky glow. Bright displays are visible, but driving out of town makes a clear difference.
Estimate from NASA VIIRS night-light data (sky-glow model within 50 km). Check access and private land before you go.
Hills and mountains
Terrain is not modelled for this place.
From elevation data (AWS Terrain Tiles) along seven lines of sight up to 30 km.
Best months to see the aurora in Ushuaia
Share of nights 2005–2025 that were dark, active enough here and mostly clear.
Activity of Kp 9+ or more is too rare here for monthly odds to be meaningful. The table still shows how often nights are clear and dark.
| Month | Good nights | Clear nights | Darkness | Low / high |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| March | 0% | 41% | 8.5 h | 3° / 9°C |
| April | 0% | 43% | 10.9 h | 2° / 6°C |
| May | 0% | 49% | 12.6 h | 0° / 4°C |
| June | 0% | 48% | 13.6 h | -2° / 1°C |
| July | 0% | 48% | 13.3 h | -3° / 1°C |
| August | 0% | 48% | 11.6 h | -2° / 2°C |
| September | 0% | 46% | 9.5 h | -1° / 5°C |
| October | 0% | 44% | 7.0 h | 1° / 7°C |
Darkness through the year
- No full darkness (Sun 12° below the horizon) from 6 December to 6 January — the sky stays too bright for most auroras.
- Next new moon 9 November, next full moon 26 October. The darkest skies are in the week around new moon.
Nights when Ushuaia could catch it in photos
Since 1995, nights with Kp 7.3 or more while it was dark here — a red or green glow low on the horizon.
- 12 November 2025 · Kp 7.3
- 11 November 2025 · Kp 8.7
- 31 May 2025 · Kp 7.7
- 10 October 2024 · Kp 8.3
- 16 September 2024 · Kp 7.3
- 11 May 2024 · Kp 7.7
- 10 May 2024 · Kp 9.0
- 23 April 2023 · Kp 8.0
- 23 March 2023 · Kp 8.0
- 25 August 2018 · Kp 7.3
- 7 September 2017 · Kp 8.0
- 22 June 2015 · Kp 7.7
Where to watch near Ushuaia
-
Playa Larga
Beagle Channel shore east of the city, away from town lights, with views south across the water. · about 8 km · Open in OpenStreetMap
-
Ensenada Zaratiegui (Parque Nacional Tierra del Fuego)
Bay on the Beagle Channel inside the national park, far from city lights. · about 20 km · Open in OpenStreetMap
-
Bahía Lapataia (Parque Nacional Tierra del Fuego)
End of Ruta 3 in the national park with dark skies and water views. · about 25 km · Open in OpenStreetMap
Local knowledge
- Although this is a very high southern latitude, the south magnetic pole is offset towards Australia and New Zealand, so naked-eye aurora here is rare and usually needs a strong geomagnetic storm (as in May and October 2024).
- Winter nights last up to about 17 hours, giving the longest window to watch during a geomagnetic storm.
- Follow NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center storm alerts; a G3-G4 storm is usually needed for a visible display here.
- Displays are often far more vivid in photos than to the eye, so bring a camera that can take long exposures.
- The mountains of Isla Navarino rise across the Beagle Channel to the south, so look for spots with the lowest southern skyline.
Parque Nacional Tierra del Fuego is open 8am-8pm daily; in winter it is dark well before closing, but you must leave by 8pm.
Winter roads and coastal tracks can be icy; carry warm gear and a torch.
Practical information
- Nearest airport
- Ushuaia - Malvinas Argentinas International Airport (USH) · 4 km
- Typical low / high in January
- 4° / 11°C
- What to wear
- Cool nights: layers, a windproof jacket, hat and gloves for standing still outside. Full clothing guide
- Emergency number
- 911 (national emergencies); 107 medical (varies by locality); 100 fire; 103 Defensa Civil
- Winter driving
- On RN 3 in Tierra del Fuego, winter road reports based on Vialidad Nacional data require chains for heavy vehicles and winter tyres for light vehicles, and the Ushuaia-Tolhuin section (Paso Garibaldi) can close in heavy snow. Check Vialidad Nacional's road status before travelling. Road conditions
- Access to land
- Parque Nacional Tierra del Fuego (APN) has daytime entry hours (April-September 9:00-18:00); free camping is permitted only in designated areas with an APN camping permit, so night viewing inside the park means staying at an authorised campsite.
- Weather service
- Servicio Meteorológico Nacional (SMN)
Questions and answers
What Kp do you need to see the aurora in Ushuaia?
From Ushuaia the aurora is too low for the naked eye except in the most extreme storms, but in severe storms (about Kp 7.3 or more) cameras record a red glow low in the south.
Which way should I look for the aurora in Ushuaia?
Around Ushuaia the aurora is often right overhead. Start by facing south, but look up and all around — in strong storms it can fill the whole sky and even appear behind you.
When is the aurora season in Ushuaia?
From 6 December to 6 January the sky in Ushuaia never gets dark enough. Outside that period the aurora can be seen whenever activity and clouds allow.
Is there much light pollution in Ushuaia?
Noticeable sky glow. Bright displays are visible, but driving out of town makes a clear difference.
Also covered by this forecast
Villages and districts around Ushuaia share its forecast: within a few kilometres the sky, the Kp needed and the best direction are the same.
- Barrio Almirante Brown 1 km
- Glaciar Martial 5 km
- Bahía Ensenada 11 km
- Lago Roca 16 km
- Lapataia 17 km
- Tierra Mayor 18 km
- Valle Hermoso 20 km
- Cerro Castor 22 km
- Puerto Remolino 30 km
- Departamento de Ushuaia 34 km