Capital Region, IcelandMagnetic latitude 64.1°Population 118,91837 m above sea level
Northern lights in Reykjavík
From Reykjavík the aurora can show up on almost any clear, dark night — low to the north-north-west when activity is quiet, higher and overhead when it picks up. Since 1995 that level (Kp 4.7) was reached during darkness here on 825 nights.
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Right now
It is still light here. Darkness starts at 19:47.
Updates every minute while this page is open.
Tonight in one minute
Not tonight
- Solar activity Strong enough: Kp 2.7 expected, 0 needed here.
- Sky Overcast (96% cloud).
- Darkness Dark from 19:47 to 06:39.
What to do: Not tonight — your next chance is shown just below.
- Detailed forecast Fri 16 2.7 Possible · Kp 2.7
- Sat 17 1.7 Possible · Kp 1.7
- 27-day trend Sun 18 2 Possible · Kp 2
- Mon 19 2 Possible · Kp 2
- Tue 20 3 Good chance · Kp 3
- Wed 21 4 Possible · Kp 4
- Thu 22 4 Possible · Kp 4
- Fri 23 4 Possible · Kp 4
- Sat 24 3 Possible · Kp 3
- Sun 25 2 Possible · Kp 2
- Mon 26 2 Possible · Kp 2
- Tue 27 2 Possible · Kp 2
- Wed 28 2 Possible · Kp 2
- Thu 29 2 Good chance · Kp 2
- Fri 30 5 Good chance · Kp 5
- Sat 31 5 Good chance · Kp 5
- Sun 1 5 Good chance · Kp 5
- Mon 2 3 Good chance · Kp 3
- Tue 3 2 Good chance · Kp 2
- Wed 4 2 Good chance · Kp 2
- Thu 5 3 Good chance · Kp 3
- Fri 6 3 Good chance · Kp 3
- Sat 7 3 Good chance · Kp 3
Monday 19 October — Possible · Kp 2 · best around 00:30 · Forecast cloud: 84%. · Reliability: low (rough trend)
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 13:45 local time
Unlikely
Best around 02:00. Forecast max Kp 2.7 (this place needs 0), average cloud 96%.
- Dark enough
- 19:47 – 06:39
- Sunset
- 18:04 · sunrise 08:23
- Moon
- 31%
- Kp neededKp index: a 0–9 measure of geomagnetic activity. The higher it is, the further from the poles the aurora reaches.
- Kp 0
- Look towards
- north-north-west (346°)
Clearer skies nearby tonight
Tonight's cloud forecast is similar in every direction within 100 km (96% here), so driving is unlikely to help.
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
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What you would see from Reykjavík
Facing north-north-west. Bands show where the aurora sits at two activity levels.
| Kp | What you see | Lower edge | Ray tops | Distance to the aurora |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | Visible to the north-north-west | 20° | 35° | 267 km |
| 2 | Overhead and all around | – | – | – |
| 3 | Overhead, and also to the south-south-east | – | – | – |
| 4 | Overhead, and also to the south-south-east | – | – | – |
| 5 | Overhead, and also to the south-south-east | – | – | – |
| 6 | Overhead, and also to the south-south-east | – | – | – |
| 7 | Overhead, and also to the south-south-east | – | – | – |
| 8 | Overhead, and also to the south-south-east | – | – | – |
| 9 | Overhead, and also to the south-south-east | – | – | – |
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 eye in Reykjavík 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) 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
City sky. City lights hide all but the brightest displays. Plan to leave the urban area.
A noticeably darker area starts about 30 km to the north. Open in OpenStreetMap
Estimate from NASA VIIRS night-light data (sky-glow model within 50 km). Check access and private land before you go.
Hills and mountains
The horizon towards the north-north-west is open (terrain below 0.9°), so low aurora is not blocked.
From elevation data (AWS Terrain Tiles) along seven lines of sight up to 30 km.
Best months to see the aurora in Reykjavík
Share of nights 2005–2025 that were dark, active enough here and mostly clear.
December has been the best month (39% of nights), followed by November (33%).
| Month | Good nights | Clear nights | Darkness | Low / high |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| September | 29% | 29% | 7.1 h | 6° / 10°C |
| October | 31% | 31% | 10.5 h | 2° / 6°C |
| November | 33% | 33% | 13.3 h | 0° / 3°C |
| December | 39% | 39% | 14.6 h | -2° / 2°C |
| January | 29% | 29% | 14.0 h | -2° / 2°C |
| February | 29% | 29% | 11.5 h | -2° / 2°C |
| March | 28% | 28% | 8.6 h | -1° / 3°C |
| April | 24% | 29% | 3.8 h | 1° / 5°C |
Darkness through the year
- No full darkness (Sun 12° below the horizon) from 26 April to 16 August — 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.
Aurora nights in Reykjavík since 1995
Nights when Kp reached 4.7 or more while it was dark here.
Most recent strong nights
- 10 October 2026 · Kp 5.7
- 4 October 2026 · Kp 5.0
- 3 April 2026 · Kp 5.7
- 22 March 2026 · Kp 6.7
- 20 March 2026 · Kp 7.0
- 13 March 2026 · Kp 6.0
- 3 March 2026 · Kp 5.0
- 22 February 2026 · Kp 5.3
Where to watch near Reykjavík
-
Grótta Lighthouse (Seltjarnarnes)
North-facing shoreline at the tip of Seltjarnarnes with parking, the closest dark-ish spot to central Reykjavík. · about 5 km · Open in OpenStreetMap
-
Perlan (Öskjuhlíð)
Elevated observation deck inside the city; easiest option, but only good for strong displays because of city light. · about 3 km · Open in OpenStreetMap
-
Kleifarvatn
Remote lake on the Reykjanes Peninsula with little light pollution and several small parking areas along the road. · about 35 km · Open in OpenStreetMap
-
Þingvellir National Park (Hakið visitor centre)
Wide open skies over Lake Þingvallavatn, about 40-60 minutes from Reykjavík on a well-maintained road. · about 45 km · Open in OpenStreetMap
Local knowledge
- The aurora season in Iceland runs roughly from September to April, when nights are dark enough.
- Check both the aurora forecast and the cloud-cover forecast from the Icelandic Met Office (vedur.is) before heading out, since clear skies matter most.
- City lights wash out faint displays, so drive 20-60 minutes out of town for darker skies; Perlan or Grótta work for strong displays without leaving the city.
- Give your eyes 15-20 minutes to adapt to the dark and avoid looking at your phone screen.
- Check road conditions at umferdin.is / road.is before driving out of the city in winter.
The causeway to Grótta island floods at high tide; check the tide before walking out.
Never stop on the road or road shoulder to watch the lights; pull into a designated parking area.
Off-road driving is illegal in Iceland and heavily fined.
Practical information
- Nearest airport
- Reykjavík Domestic Airport (RKV) · 2 km
Keflavik International Airport (KEF) · 38 km - Typical low / high in December
- -2° / 2°C
- What to wear
- Below freezing at night: thermal layers, a warm jacket, hat, gloves and winter boots. Full clothing guide
- Emergency number
- 112
- Winter driving
- Under Regulation 822/2004, studded tyres and chains are prohibited from 15 April to 31 October unless driving conditions require them, as judged by local police. The Icelandic Road and Coastal Administration (Vegagerðin) publishes road conditions on umferdin.is. Road conditions
- Access to land
- Off-road driving is banned under the Nature Conservation Act no. 60/2013 and punishable by fines or imprisonment. Exceptions are glaciers and solidly frozen or snow-covered ground where nature cannot be damaged. You may park only about one car's width off the road, and only where it causes no damage or accident risk.
- Official space-weather service
- Icelandic Met Office aurora forecast
- Weather service
- Icelandic Met Office (Veðurstofa Íslands)
Questions and answers
What Kp do you need to see the aurora in Reykjavík?
From Reykjavík the aurora can show up on almost any clear, dark night — low to the north-north-west when activity is quiet, higher and overhead when it picks up.
Which way should I look for the aurora in Reykjavík?
Face north-north-west (about 346° from true north). At Kp 0 the lower edge of the aurora sits roughly 20° above the horizon; stronger activity lifts it higher and further across the sky.
What is the best month to see the aurora in Reykjavík?
Over 2005–2025, December gave the best odds in Reykjavík (39% of nights dark, active enough and mostly clear), followed by November (33%).
When is the aurora season in Reykjavík?
From 26 April to 16 August the sky in Reykjavík never gets dark enough. Outside that period the aurora can be seen whenever activity and clouds allow.
Is there much light pollution in Reykjavík?
City lights hide all but the brightest displays. Plan to leave the urban area. A noticeably darker area starts about 30 km to the north.
When was the aurora last possible in Reykjavík?
Activity last reached storm level (Kp 5 or more) during darkness in Reykjavík on 10 October 2026 (Kp 5.7) — 825 such nights since 1995. Here the aurora also appears on many quieter nights.
Also covered by this forecast
Villages and districts around Reykjavík share its forecast: within a few kilometres the sky, the Kp needed and the best direction are the same.
- Reykjavíkurborg 4 km