Northwestern Region, IcelandMagnetic latitude 65.6°Population 2,6141 m above sea level
Northern lights in Sauðárkrókur
Sauðárkrókur sits right under the auroral oval: on clear, dark nights the aurora is often overhead, even when activity is quiet. Clouds matter far more than the Kp number here.
Right now
It is still light here. Darkness starts at 19:33.
Latest measured half-hour activity worldwide: Hp30 0.7.
Updates every minute while this page is open. Ground data: GFZ Potsdam Hp30 index (CC BY 4.0).
Tonight in one minute
Maybe — worth a look
- Solar activity Strong enough: Kp 2.3 expected, 0 needed here.
- Sky Partly cloudy (70% cloud) — look for gaps.
- Darkness Dark from 19:33 to 06:35.
What to do: Go somewhere dark around 05:00, give your eyes 15 minutes to adjust and look north-north-west, low over the horizon.
Monday 19 October — Possible · Kp 2.3 · best around 01:30 · Forecast cloud: 70%. · 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 18:08 local time
Excellent chance
Best around 05:00. Forecast max Kp 2.3 (this place needs 0), average cloud 70%.
- Dark enough
- 19:33 – 06:35
- Sunset
- 17:42 · sunrise 08:27
- Moon
- 51% · ↑ 18:28 · ↓ 20:37
- 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°)
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 | Sun, 19 | Sun, 22 | Mon, 01 | Mon, 04 | Mon, 19 | Mon, 22 | Tue, 01 | Tue, 04 | Tue, 19 | Tue, 22 | Wed, 01 | Wed, 04 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low cloud | 24% | 45% | 51% | 35% | 5% | 30% | 44% | 44% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Mid cloud | 100% | 100% | 88% | 29% | 100% | 100% | 98% | 87% | 93% | 40% | 4% | 2% |
| High cloud | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 4% | 52% | 88% | 98% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Temperature | 7 °C | 6 °C | 6 °C | 4 °C | 4 °C | 4 °C | 4 °C | 4 °C | 2 °C | 1 °C | 1 °C | 0 °C |
| Feels like | 2 °C | 1 °C | 0 °C | -2 °C | 0 °C | 2 °C | 4 °C | 4 °C | 0 °C | -1 °C | -2 °C | -2 °C |
| Wind | 11 m/s | 12 m/s | 13 m/s | 14 m/s | 4 m/s | 2 m/s | 1 m/s | 1 m/s | 2 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 Sauðárkrókur
The aurora only shows through clear skies, so the weather matters as much as the Kp index. Here is the general forecast for Sauðárkrókur: temperature, wind and the chance of rain for the coming days.
Planning further ahead? See the hour-by-hour weather forecast for Sauðárkrókur on Atlas of Seasons.
Seeing it right now?
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Live webcams near Sauðárkrókur
Check the sky for yourself: public cameras within 300 km. They open on the camera owner's website.
- Hlíðarfjall, Akureyri (opens in a new tab) Scenic
- Akureyri (opens in a new tab) Scenic
- Mývatn (opens in a new tab) Scenic
- Mánárbakki (Tjörnes) (opens in a new tab) Scenic
- Stykkishólmur (opens in a new tab) Scenic
These cameras belong to their owners — we only link to them. Most show little in daylight or under cloud, and some pause in summer.
What you would see from Sauðárkrókur
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 | 46° | 63° | 100 km |
| 2 | Overhead, and also to the south-south-east | – | – | – |
| 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 next 24 h eye in Sauðárkrókur 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) 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.
A noticeably darker area starts about 5 km to the east. 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 terrain rises to about 8° above the horizon towards the north-north-west. That hides low aurora: here you need about Kp 0 instead of Kp 0. A hilltop, shore or open field with a clear view to the north-north-west helps.
From elevation data (AWS Terrain Tiles) along seven lines of sight up to 30 km.
Best months to see the aurora in Sauðárkrókur
Share of nights 2005–2025 that were dark, active enough here and mostly clear.
September has been the best month (19% of nights), followed by October (17%).
| Month | Good nights | Clear nights | Darkness | Low / high |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| September | 19% | 19% | 6.9 h | 5° / 8°C |
| October | 17% | 17% | 10.5 h | 2° / 4°C |
| November | 14% | 14% | 13.4 h | -1° / 2°C |
| December | 13% | 13% | 15.0 h | -2° / 1°C |
| January | 9% | 9% | 14.1 h | -3° / 0°C |
| February | 14% | 14% | 11.5 h | -3° / 0°C |
| March | 12% | 12% | 8.4 h | -3° / 0°C |
| April | 14% | 24% | 2.4 h | -1° / 2°C |
Darkness through the year
- No full darkness (Sun 12° below the horizon) from 22 April to 20 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 Sauðárkrókur since 1995
Nights when Kp reached 4.7 or more while it was dark here.
Most recent strong nights
- 10 October 2026 · Kp 7.0
- 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
Practical information
- Nearest airport
- Akureyri International Airport (AEY) · 72 km
- Typical low / high in September
- 5° / 8°C
- What to wear
- Cool nights: layers, a windproof jacket, hat and gloves for standing still outside. 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 Sauðárkrókur?
Sauðárkrókur sits right under the auroral oval: on clear, dark nights the aurora is often overhead, even when activity is quiet. Clouds matter far more than the Kp number here.
Which way should I look for the aurora in Sauðárkrókur?
Face north-north-west (about 346° from true north). At Kp 0 the lower edge of the aurora sits roughly 46° above the horizon; stronger activity lifts it higher and further across the sky.
What is the best month to see the aurora in Sauðárkrókur?
Over 2005–2025, September gave the best odds in Sauðárkrókur (19% of nights dark, active enough and mostly clear), followed by October (17%).
When is the aurora season in Sauðárkrókur?
From 22 April to 20 August the sky in Sauðárkrókur never gets dark enough. Outside that period the aurora can be seen whenever activity and clouds allow.
Is there much light pollution in Sauðárkrókur?
Noticeable sky glow. Bright displays are visible, but driving out of town makes a clear difference. A noticeably darker area starts about 5 km to the east.
When was the aurora last possible in Sauðárkrókur?
Activity last reached storm level (Kp 5 or more) during darkness in Sauðárkrókur on 10 October 2026 (Kp 7.0) — 801 such nights since 1995. Here the aurora also appears on many quieter nights.
Also covered by this forecast
Villages and districts around Sauðárkrókur share its forecast: within a few kilometres the sky, the Kp needed and the best direction are the same.
- Rip 9 km
- Hofsós 20 km
- Varmahlíð 23 km
- Hólar 24 km
- Sveitarfélagið Skagaströnd 27 km
- Sveitarfélagið Skagafjörður 29 km
- Skagaströnd 31 km
- Blönduós 31 km
- Húnabyggð 32 km
- Reykir 34 km
- Skagabyggð 36 km