South Australia, AustraliaMagnetic latitude 45.7°Population 13,81032 m above sea level
Can you see the southern lights in Port Lincoln?
Only severe geomagnetic storms (Kp 8.3 or more) bring the aurora into view from Port Lincoln — a few nights per solar cycle, low in the south. Since 1995 that level (Kp 8.3) was reached during darkness here on 17 nights.
Right now
Quiet right now (Kp 1.7).
Updates every minute while this page is open.
Tonight in one minute
Not tonight
- Solar activity Too weak: Kp 3.3 expected, 8.3 needed here.
- Sky Overcast (82% cloud).
- Darkness Dark from 20:42 to 05:38. A bright moon (77%) washes out faint displays.
What to do: Not tonight — your next chance is shown just below.
Thursday 22 October — No · Kp 3.3 · Forecast cloud: 82%. · 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 00:38 local time
Unlikely
Best around 00:30. Forecast max Kp 3.3 (this place needs 8.3), average cloud 82%.
- Dark enough
- 20:42 – 05:38
- Sunset
- 19:45 · sunrise 06:36
- Moon
- 77% · ↑ 15:44 · ↓ 04:11
- Kp neededKp index: a 0–9 measure of geomagnetic activity. The higher it is, the further from the poles the aurora reaches.
- Kp 8.3
- Kp for photos
- In photos: from Kp 6.7 (a red glow low in the south).
- Look towards
- south (184°)
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, 00 | Thu, 03 | Thu, 21 | Fri, 00 | Fri, 03 | Fri, 21 | Sat, 00 | Sat, 03 | Sat, 21 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low cloud | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 60% |
| Mid cloud | 0% | 0% | 30% | 34% | 38% | 23% | 28% | 28% | 76% |
| High cloud | 96% | 65% | 1% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 28% | 88% | 79% |
| Temperature | 11 °C | 12 °C | 20 °C | 17 °C | 17 °C | 14 °C | 13 °C | 13 °C | 13 °C |
| Feels like | 11 °C | 12 °C | 20 °C | 17 °C | 17 °C | 14 °C | 13 °C | 13 °C | 13 °C |
| Wind | 1 m/s | 2 m/s | 1 m/s | 1 m/s | 1 m/s | 3 m/s | 2 m/s | 2 m/s | 2 m/s |
Cloud layers and weather: Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0).
Score = activity (NOAA Kp and OVATION) × clear sky (MET Norway) × darkness × moonlight. Methodology
Weather in Port Lincoln
The aurora only shows through clear skies, so the weather matters as much as the Kp index. Here is the general forecast for Port Lincoln: temperature, wind and the chance of rain for the coming days.
Planning further ahead? See the hour-by-hour weather forecast for Port Lincoln on Atlas of Seasons.
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What you would see from Port Lincoln
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 | -5° | -2° | 1,868 km |
| 3 | Below the horizon | -4° | -1° | 1,646 km |
| 4 | Below the horizon | -2° | 1° | 1,423 km |
| 5 | Below the horizon | 0° | 4° | 1,201 km |
| 6 | Below the horizon | 2° | 7° | 979 km |
| 7 | Faint glow, mostly on camera | 4° | 11° | 756 km |
| 8 | Faint glow, mostly on camera | 9° | 18° | 534 km |
| 9 | Visible to the south | 17° | 31° | 311 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 next 24 h 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) 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 Port Lincoln Most of the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, Poland, Czechia; red glow in photos from France and the northern Alps.
- Kp 8 Severe storm (G4) eye in Port Lincoln 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
Rural to suburban. Some sky glow from nearby lights. Moderate displays are fine; faint ones are easier a few kilometres out.
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 Port Lincoln
Share of nights 2005–2025 that were dark, active enough here and mostly clear.
Activity of Kp 8.3 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% | 78% | 9.8 h | 18° / 21°C |
| April | 0% | 77% | 11.0 h | 17° / 19°C |
| May | 0.3% | 76% | 11.6 h | 16° / 17°C |
| June | 0% | 73% | 12.3 h | 14° / 16°C |
| July | 0% | 81% | 11.9 h | 13° / 15°C |
| August | 0.2% | 86% | 11.3 h | 13° / 15°C |
| September | 0% | 84% | 10.3 h | 13° / 16°C |
| October | 0% | 80% | 9.0 h | 14° / 17°C |
Aurora nights in Port Lincoln since 1995
Nights when Kp reached 8.3 or more while it was dark here.
Most recent strong nights
- 10 October 2024 · Kp 8.3
- 11 May 2024 · Kp 9.0
- 10 May 2024 · Kp 8.7
- 24 March 2024 · Kp 8.3
- 23 April 2023 · Kp 8.3
- 8 September 2017 · Kp 8.3
- 22 June 2015 · Kp 8.3
- 24 August 2005 · Kp 8.7
Practical information
- Nearest airport
- Port Lincoln Airport (PLO) · 13 km
- Typical low / high in May
- 16° / 17°C
- What to wear
- Cool nights: layers, a windproof jacket, hat and gloves for standing still outside. Full clothing guide
- Emergency number
- 000 (112 also works from mobile phones)
- Winter driving
- Under Victoria's Alpine Resorts (Management) Regulations 2020, every vehicle entering Falls Creek, Mt Baw Baw, Mt Buller, Mt Hotham and Mt Stirling must carry fitting wheel chains during the declared snow season (2026: 7 June - 4 October). Check VicTraffic for live Victorian road disruptions; in Tasmania, elevated roads get snow and ice in winter and closures are posted via Tasmania Police alerts / TasALERT. Road conditions
- Access to land
- Most Tasmanian national parks require a valid Parks & Wildlife Service parks pass per vehicle (24-hour, holiday/8-week, annual options; Cradle Mountain excluded from the 24-hour pass). Check land tenure before parking at night and respect any local closures.
- Official space-weather service
- Bureau of Meteorology Australian Space Weather Forecasting Centre (Aurora Watch/Alert/Outlook)
- Weather service
- Bureau of Meteorology
Questions and answers
What Kp do you need to see the aurora in Port Lincoln?
Only severe geomagnetic storms (Kp 8.3 or more) bring the aurora into view from Port Lincoln — a few nights per solar cycle, low in the south.
Which way should I look for the aurora in Port Lincoln?
Face south (about 184° from true north). At Kp 8.3 the lower edge of the aurora sits roughly 17° above the horizon; stronger activity lifts it higher and further across the sky.
When is the aurora season in Port Lincoln?
Port Lincoln gets dark enough for the aurora all year round, though the long winter nights give the most hours to watch.
Is there much light pollution in Port Lincoln?
Some sky glow from nearby lights. Moderate displays are fine; faint ones are easier a few kilometres out.
When was the aurora last possible in Port Lincoln?
The most recent night in our data when activity reached the level Port Lincoln needs, during darkness, was 10 October 2024 (Kp 8.3). It has happened on 17 nights since 1995.
Also covered by this forecast
Villages and districts around Port Lincoln share its forecast: within a few kilometres the sky, the Kp needed and the best direction are the same.
- Port Lincoln 2 km
- Boston Island 6 km
- Duck Ponds 8 km
- Tiatukia 8 km
- Hawson 9 km
- Tulka 10 km
- North Shields 11 km
- Tootenilla 11 km
- Sleaford 15 km
- Poonindie 16 km
- Coomunga 18 km
- Coontapoo 19 km
- Charlton Gully 21 km
- Louth Bay 22 km
- Pearlah 23 km
- Whites Flat 24 km
- The Fountain 26 km
- Koodinga 26 km
- Whites River 26 km
- Wanilla 31 km
- Lower Eyre 31 km
- Koppio 34 km
- Edillilie 38 km