Xinjiang, ChinaMagnetic latitude 41.5°Population 235,585509 m above sea level
Can you see the northern lights in Bole?
From Bole the aurora is too low for the naked eye except in the most extreme storms, but in severe storms (about Kp 5.3 or more) cameras record a red glow low in the north. Strong enough for photos on 465 nights since 1995 — most recently on 10 October 2026.
Right now
It is still light here. Darkness starts at 20:47.
Latest measured half-hour activity worldwide: Hp30 1.7.
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, 5.3 needed here.
- Sky Mostly clear (5% cloud).
- Darkness Dark from 20:47 to 07:47.
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
- Mon 19 1.7 No · Kp 1.7
- 27-day trend 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 5 No · Kp 5
- 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 3 No · Kp 3
- Fri 6 3 No · Kp 3
- Sat 7 3 No · Kp 3
Sunday 18 October — No · Kp 2 · Forecast cloud: 5%. · 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 09:26 local time
Unlikely
Best around 20:00. Forecast max Kp 2.0 (this place needs 9+), average cloud 5%.
- Dark enough
- 20:47 – 07:47
- Sunset
- 19:44 · sunrise 08:50
- Moon
- 35% · ↑ 15:31 · ↓ 23:47
- 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 5.3 (a red glow low in the north).
- Look towards
- north (358°)
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, 20 | Sat, 23 | Sun, 02 | Sun, 05 | Sun, 20 | Sun, 23 | Mon, 02 | Mon, 05 | Mon, 20 | Mon, 23 | Tue, 02 | Tue, 05 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low cloud | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Mid cloud | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| High cloud | 5% | 0% | 4% | 0% | 89% | 1% | 0% | 27% | 0% | 0% | 25% | 0% |
| Temperature | 5 °C | 3 °C | 0 °C | 0 °C | 10 °C | 7 °C | 5 °C | 4 °C | 9 °C | 7 °C | 4 °C | 3 °C |
| Feels like | 2 °C | -2 °C | -5 °C | -5 °C | 6 °C | 3 °C | 1 °C | -1 °C | 5 °C | 3 °C | 1 °C | -1 °C |
| Wind | 1 m/s | 4 m/s | 4 m/s | 3 m/s | 2 m/s | 1 m/s | 1 m/s | 3 m/s | 2 m/s | 1 m/s | 1 m/s | 2 m/s |
| Visibility | 43 km | 39 km | 39 km | 37 km | 43 km | 43 km | 39 km | 39 km | 44 km | 44 km | 39 km | 37 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 Bole
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 | -8° | -6° | 2,335 km |
| 3 | Below the horizon | -7° | -4° | 2,113 km |
| 4 | Below the horizon | -5° | -3° | 1,890 km |
| 5 | Below the horizon | -4° | -1° | 1,668 km |
| 6 | Faint glow, mostly on camera | -2° | 1° | 1,446 km |
| 7 | Faint glow, mostly on camera | -1° | 4° | 1,223 km |
| 8 | Faint glow, mostly on camera | 1° | 7° | 1,001 km |
| 9 | Faint glow, mostly on camera | 4° | 11° | 778 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 next 24 h Overhead in the Arctic; low in the north from southern Norway, Sweden, Finland and northern Scotland.
- Kp 5 Minor storm (G1) camera in Bole 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) 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 Bole
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% | 68% | 9.1 h | 8° / 20°C |
| October | 0% | 57% | 10.9 h | 1° / 12°C |
| November | 0% | 47% | 12.0 h | -6° / 2°C |
| December | 0% | 44% | 12.6 h | -13° / -5°C |
| January | 0% | 55% | 12.4 h | -16° / -8°C |
| February | 0% | 59% | 11.4 h | -13° / -4°C |
| March | 0% | 56% | 9.9 h | -5° / 5°C |
| April | 0% | 57% | 8.1 h | 2° / 14°C |
Nights when Bole could catch it in photos
Since 1995, nights with Kp 5.3 or more while it was dark here — a red or green glow low on the horizon.
- 10 October 2026 · Kp 7.3
- 4 October 2026 · Kp 5.7
- 18 August 2026 · Kp 5.3
- 8 August 2026 · Kp 5.7
- 2 August 2026 · Kp 5.7
- 4 July 2026 · Kp 5.7
- 5 June 2026 · Kp 6.0
- 15 May 2026 · Kp 5.3
- 4 May 2026 · Kp 6.0
- 3 April 2026 · Kp 6.3
- 2 April 2026 · Kp 6.0
- 22 March 2026 · Kp 7.0
Practical information
- Nearest airport
- Bole Alashankou Airport (BPL) · 18 km
- Typical low / high in January
- -16° / -8°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 Bole?
From Bole the aurora is too low for the naked eye except in the most extreme storms, but in severe storms (about Kp 5.3 or more) cameras record a red glow low in the north.
Which way should I look for the aurora in Bole?
Around Bole 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 Bole?
Bole 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 Bole?
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 Bole share its forecast: within a few kilometres the sky, the Kp needed and the best direction are the same.
- Qingdeli 1 km
- Xiangban Harigen Muchang 4 km
- Qingdeli Jiedao 5 km
- Genideng Xicun 5 km
- Tuoguosheng Buhucun 5 km
- Qindel 6 km
- Bashiliutuanchang 6 km
- Tamugen Zangecun 6 km
- Dongduguli Mutucun 6 km
- Bole Shi 7 km
- Baya’er Bulagecun 7 km
- Anbengna Bagecun 7 km
- Nairen Bulagecun 8 km
- Bashisituanchang Jiulian 9 km
- Shiyilian 9 km
- Guolin Buhucun 10 km
- Kerimucun 10 km
- Dalt 11 km
- Bashisituanchang 11 km
- Ut Bulag 12 km
- Bage Burecun 12 km
- Bashisituanchang Liulian 12 km
- Dongdu Haoxicun 12 km
- Bortala 13 km
- Wulan Ade’ergecun 13 km
- Tate Legencun 13 km
- Sangjin Bulagecun 13 km
- Beide Bulagecun 14 km
- Gageci Genwula Sibeicun 14 km
- Bashiliutuanchang Shilian 14 km
- Jieli Moduncun 15 km
- Boge Qige’er Moduncun 15 km
- Tawengha Mu’ercun 15 km
- Xiaoyingpan 16 km
- Lamen Buhucun 16 km
- Wulankerimucun 16 km
- Gageci Genjie Gedecun 16 km
- Danghe’erte Bulagecun 17 km
- Barunweng Gu’ercun 18 km
- Tuoli Bulagecun 18 km