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Northern Lights in Czechia: Where and When to See Them
From Czechia the aurora is seen only during severe geomagnetic storms (Kp 8 or more), a few nights per solar cycle.
Can you see the northern lights in Czechia tonight?
Not tonight: activity is too low for Czechia. The forecast peaks at Kp 3.3, but you need about Kp 8 near Trutnov. A storm can build within a day, so check again tomorrow.
You also need a clear sky and real darkness: each town's page shows its cloud forecast and best hour tonight.
Where the aurora is visible tonight 3-day Kp forecast
Kp forecast: NOAA SWPC, checked every 10 minutes.
Where the aurora is easiest to see
| Place | Region | Kp needed | Kp for photos | Magnetic latitude |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Děčín | Ústí nad Labem Region | 7.7 | 6 | 46.8° |
| Liberec | Liberec Region | 8 | 6.3 | 46.7° |
| Hradec Králové | Hradec Králové Region | 8 | 6.3 | 46.1° |
| Ústí nad Labem | Ústí nad Labem Region | 8 | 6.3 | 46.6° |
| Most | Ústí nad Labem Region | 8 | 6.3 | 46.4° |
| Teplice | Ústí nad Labem Region | 8 | 6.3 | 46.6° |
| Mladá Boleslav | Central Bohemian Region | 8 | 6.3 | 46.3° |
| Chomutov | Ústí nad Labem Region | 8 | 6.3 | 46.4° |
Largest cities
| Place | Population | Kp needed |
|---|---|---|
| Prague | 1,165,581 | 8.3 |
| Brno | 404,296 | 8.7 |
| Ostrava | 280,853 | 8.3 |
| Pilsen | 187,863 | 8.3 |
| Liberec | 102,951 | 8 |
| Olomouc | 99,496 | 8.3 |
| České Budějovice | 93,426 | 9 |
| Hradec Králové | 90,596 | 8 |
Storm watch: can you see the northern lights from Czechia?
Rarely, but yes. In strong storms (about Kp 6 or more) the red upper layer of the aurora, 300–400 km up, rises above the northern horizon of Czechia. Phone and camera sensors pick it up far more easily than the eye.
…
| Place | Kp for photos | Kp for the eye | Photo nights since 1995 | Last time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Děčín | 6 | 7.7 | 234 | Oct 2026 |
| Liberec | 6.3 | 8 | 167 | Oct 2026 |
| Hradec Králové | 6.3 | 8 | 167 | Oct 2026 |
| Ústí nad Labem | 6.3 | 8 | 167 | Oct 2026 |
| Most | 6.3 | 8 | 167 | Oct 2026 |
| Teplice | 6.3 | 8 | 167 | Oct 2026 |
| Mladá Boleslav | 6.3 | 8 | 167 | Oct 2026 |
| Chomutov | 6.3 | 8 | 167 | Oct 2026 |
| Jablonec nad Nisou | 6.3 | 8 | 166 | Oct 2026 |
| Karlovy Vary | 6.3 | 8 | 167 | Oct 2026 |
| Česká Lípa | 6.3 | 8 | 167 | Oct 2026 |
| Trutnov | 6.3 | 8 | 166 | Oct 2026 |
When it was last seen from Czechia
Nights with enough activity for photos from Děčín during darkness (Kp 6 or more):
- 10 October 2026 · Kp 7.0
- 15 May 2026 · Kp 6.0
- 4 May 2026 · Kp 6.0
- 22 March 2026 · Kp 6.7
- 20 March 2026 · Kp 7.0
- 13 March 2026 · Kp 6.0
- 20 January 2026 · Kp 7.7
- 19 January 2026 · Kp 8.7
- 10 December 2025 · Kp 6.0
- 3 December 2025 · Kp 6.7
How to catch it from Czechia
- Watch the forecast: you need about Kp 6 or more — a strong to severe storm. These arrive a day or two after a big eruption on the Sun, so there is usually some warning.
- Get away from city lights and find an open view to the north: a coast, a hill or a field. The glow sits low over the horizon.
- Use your phone's night mode or a camera on a tripod (3–15 s). Check the photo: a red or pink sky to the north is the aurora.
- The best hours are usually 22:00–02:00 local time, but in big storms it can start right after dusk.
- 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) Scotland, southern Scandinavia, the Baltic states, the northern US states and southern Canada.
- Kp 6 Moderate storm (G2) camera in Děčín 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) eye in Děčín 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).
Live sightings
Where visitors are reporting the aurora right now. A place climbs with every report and drops again as the reports age.
- …
Latest reports
Regions of Czechia
- PragueKp 8.3+ · 16
- South Moravian RegionKp 8.7+ · 4
- Moravian-Silesian RegionKp 8.3+ · 8
- Ústí nad Labem RegionKp 7.7+ · 5
- Central Bohemian RegionKp 8+ · 4
- Olomouc RegionKp 8+ · 3
- Plzeň RegionKp 8.3+ · 1
- Zlín RegionKp 8.7+ · 2
- South Bohemian RegionKp 8.7+ · 3
- Liberec RegionKp 8+ · 3
- Hradec Králové RegionKp 8+ · 2
- Pardubice RegionKp 8.3+ · 1
- Vysočina RegionKp 8.3+ · 2
- Karlovy Vary RegionKp 8+ · 2
Practical information for Czechia
- Emergency number
- 112
- Access to land
- § 63 of Act 114/1992 grants free passage through the landscape (mainly on state, municipal and legal-entity land, excluding gardens, yards, crops and pastures with livestock), and the Forest Act lets everyone enter forests at their own risk; national park core zones have extra restrictions.
- Winter driving
- Winter tyres (min. 4 mm tread for cars; M+S still accepted) are required 1 Nov – 31 Mar when there is snow, ice or frost on the road or it can be expected, and always on sections marked with the 'Zimní výbava' sign (C 15a). Road info: national traffic information portal dopravniinfo.gov.cz. Road conditions
- Drones
- Czechia applies the EU EASA drone framework (operator registration required for drones of 250 g or more or with a camera); national authority: Civil Aviation Authority (ÚCL), https://www.caa.cz.
- Weather service
- Czech Hydrometeorological Institute (ČHMÚ)
Czech 'dark-sky parks' (Jizera 2009, cross-border with Poland; Beskydy 2013; Manětín 2014) are locally declared areas; DarkSky International certification could not be confirmed, so they are not listed above.
Compiled from official government, road-authority and weather-service sources. Rules change; check them before you travel.
Questions and answers
Can you see the northern lights in Czechia?
From Czechia the aurora is seen only during severe geomagnetic storms (Kp 8 or more), a few nights per solar cycle.
What Kp do you need to see the aurora in Czechia?
Near Trutnov about Kp 8 is enough. In Prague, the largest city, you need about Kp 8.3.
When was the aurora last visible in Czechia?
The most recent night in our data with enough activity for Trutnov during darkness was 19 January 2026 (Kp 8.7). That has happened on 25 nights since 1995.