Inner Mongolia, ChinaMagnetic latitude 36.5°Population 1,760,0001,050 m above sea level
Can you see the northern lights in Bayan Nur?
From Bayan Nur the aurora is too low for the naked eye except in the most extreme storms, but in severe storms (about Kp 8 or more) cameras record a red glow low in the north. Strong enough for photos on 27 nights since 1995 — most recently on 19 January 2026.
Right now
It is still light here. Darkness starts at 19:07.
Latest measured half-hour activity worldwide: Hp30 1.3.
Updates every minute while this page is open. Ground data: GFZ Potsdam Hp30 index (CC BY 4.0).
Tonight in one minute
Not tonight
- Solar activity Too weak: Kp 2 expected, 8 needed here.
- Sky Mostly clear (0% cloud).
- Darkness Dark from 19:07 to 06:04.
What to do: Not tonight — your next chance is shown just below.
- Detailed forecast Sat 17 2 No · Kp 2
- Sun 18 1.7 No · Kp 1.7
- 27-day trend Mon 19 2 No · Kp 2
- Tue 20 2 No · Kp 2
- Wed 21 3 No · Kp 3
- Thu 22 4 No · Kp 4
- Fri 23 4 No · Kp 4
- Sat 24 3 No · Kp 3
- Sun 25 2 No · Kp 2
- Mon 26 2 No · Kp 2
- Tue 27 2 No · Kp 2
- Wed 28 2 No · Kp 2
- Thu 29 2 No · Kp 2
- Fri 30 2 No · Kp 2
- Sat 31 5 No · Kp 5
- Sun 1 5 No · Kp 5
- Mon 2 3 No · Kp 3
- Tue 3 2 No · Kp 2
- Wed 4 2 No · Kp 2
- Thu 5 2 No · Kp 2
- Fri 6 3 No · Kp 3
- Sat 7 3 No · Kp 3
Sunday 18 October — No · Kp 2 · Forecast cloud: 0%. · Reliability: medium
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 07:27 local time
Unlikely
Best around 19:00. Forecast max Kp 2.0 (this place needs 9+), average cloud 0%.
- Dark enough
- 19:07 – 06:04
- Sunset
- 18:07 · sunrise 07:04
- Moon
- 34% · ↑ 13:29 · ↓ 22:19
- 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 8 (a red glow low in the north).
- Look towards
- north (356°)
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 | Sat, 19 | Sat, 22 | Sun, 01 | Sun, 04 | Sun, 20 | Sun, 23 | Mon, 02 | Mon, 05 | Mon, 21 | Tue, 00 | Tue, 03 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low cloud | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 2% | 0% |
| Mid cloud | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 3% | 59% | 100% |
| High cloud | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 89% | 65% | 70% |
| Temperature | 7 °C | 4 °C | 2 °C | 0 °C | 7 °C | 6 °C | 5 °C | 3 °C | 6 °C | 6 °C | 5 °C |
| Feels like | 0 °C | -2 °C | -4 °C | -5 °C | 3 °C | 2 °C | 1 °C | 0 °C | 2 °C | 0 °C | -1 °C |
| Wind | 6 m/s | 4 m/s | 4 m/s | 3 m/s | 3 m/s | 3 m/s | 3 m/s | 2 m/s | 3 m/s | 6 m/s | 6 m/s |
| Visibility | 27 km | 27 km | 27 km | 27 km | 25 km | 25 km | 24 km | 23 km | 28 km | 28 km | 28 km |
Cloud layers and weather: Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0).
Score = activity (NOAA Kp and OVATION) × clear sky (MET Norway) × darkness × moonlight. Methodology
Seeing it right now?
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What you would see from Bayan Nur
Facing north. 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 | -11° | -9° | 2,891 km |
| 3 | Below the horizon | -10° | -8° | 2,669 km |
| 4 | Below the horizon | -9° | -6° | 2,446 km |
| 5 | Below the horizon | -7° | -5° | 2,224 km |
| 6 | Below the horizon | -6° | -3° | 2,002 km |
| 7 | Below the horizon | -5° | -2° | 1,779 km |
| 8 | Faint glow, mostly on camera | -3° | 0° | 1,557 km |
| 9 | Faint glow, mostly on camera | -2° | 2° | 1,334 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) Most of the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, Poland, Czechia; red glow in photos from France and the northern Alps.
- Kp 8 Severe storm (G4) camera in Bayan Nur 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
Bright suburban sky. Strong sky glow washes out faint aurora. Head out of town for anything but a bright display.
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 Bayan Nur
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| September | 0% | 77% | 9.6 h | 9° / 23°C |
| October | 0% | 87% | 10.9 h | 1° / 14°C |
| November | 0% | 86% | 12.0 h | -7° / 4°C |
| December | 0% | 96% | 12.4 h | -14° / -4°C |
| January | 0% | 93% | 12.3 h | -16° / -5°C |
| February | 0% | 88% | 11.0 h | -13° / 0°C |
| March | 0% | 83% | 9.9 h | -5° / 8°C |
| April | 0% | 76% | 8.5 h | 1° / 16°C |
Nights when Bayan Nur could catch it in photos
Since 1995, nights with Kp 8 or more while it was dark here — a red or green glow low on the horizon.
- 19 January 2026 · Kp 8.7
- 1 January 2025 · Kp 8.0
- 10 October 2024 · Kp 8.3
- 12 August 2024 · Kp 8.0
- 11 May 2024 · Kp 8.7
- 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
- 8 May 2005 · Kp 8.3
- 21 January 2005 · Kp 8.0
Practical information
- Nearest airport
- Bayannur Tianjitai Airport (RLK) · 36 km
- Typical low / high in January
- -16° / -5°C
- What to wear
- Arctic cold: wool base layers, insulated jacket and trousers, warm boots, hat and mittens. Full clothing guide
Questions and answers
What Kp do you need to see the aurora in Bayan Nur?
From Bayan Nur the aurora is too low for the naked eye except in the most extreme storms, but in severe storms (about Kp 8 or more) cameras record a red glow low in the north.
Which way should I look for the aurora in Bayan Nur?
Around Bayan Nur the aurora is often right overhead. Start by facing north, 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 Bayan Nur?
Bayan Nur 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 Bayan Nur?
Strong sky glow washes out faint aurora. Head out of town for anything but a bright display.
Also covered by this forecast
Villages and districts around Bayan Nur share its forecast: within a few kilometres the sky, the Kp needed and the best direction are the same.
- Linhe 3 km
- Machangdi 4 km
- Chengguan 7 km
- Bayi 11 km
- Linhe Qu 13 km
- Badaiyingpan 13 km
- Badai 13 km
- Xinfeng 14 km
- Ganzhaomiao 15 km
- Balhai 17 km
- Huangyangmutou 17 km
- Dandamutou 17 km
- Ulan Suhai 18 km
- Jinjiataizi 19 km
- Huhemudu 19 km
- Youyi 19 km
- Longsheng 19 km
- Xiaozhao 19 km
- Wulannao’er 20 km
- Wuxing 22 km
- Balahai 23 km
- Huanghe 27 km
- Toudaoqiao 27 km
- Nanxiaozhao 27 km
- Guangrong 27 km
- Jianshe 27 km
- Toudaoqiao 28 km
- Tianjitaiqiao 28 km
- Minzu 30 km
- Xiecheng 31 km
- Hongqi 31 km
- Wulantuke 31 km
- Sifentan 32 km
- Edaoqiao 32 km
- Jingyanglin 32 km
- Langshan 33 km
- Hangjin Houqi 33 km
- Nanqu 33 km
- Bainaobao 34 km
- Chagan’aobao 35 km