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New Zealand11 places

Southern Lights in Southland Region, New Zealand

In Southland Region the aurora is visible from about Kp 4, first near Stewart Island/Rakiura (Oban). Stewart Island/Rakiura (Oban) has the darkest skies among the larger places.

Next chance in Southland Region

Sunday 25 October, around 01:00

Possible · Stewart Island/Rakiura (Oban) · Reliability: low (rough trend)

Weather in Southland Region

General forecast for Stewart Island/Rakiura (Oban), the main town in Southland Region. Tonight's cloud cover for every town is on its aurora page.

PlaceKp neededKp for photosLook towardsLight pollutionPopulation
Stewart Island/Rakiura (Oban) 4 2.3 SSW Pristine dark sky –
Invercargill 4.3 2.7 SSW Bright suburban sky 58,000
Gore 4.3 2.7 SSW Suburban sky 13,050

Best months in Southland Region

Share of nights 2005–2025 that were dark, active enough here and mostly clear.

July has been the best month (6% of nights), followed by March (5%).

0%10% January: 2% Jan February: 4% Feb March: 5% Mar April: 5% Apr May: 5% May June: 4% Jun July: 6% Jul August: 5% Aug September: 4% Sept October: 3% Oct November: 3% Nov December: 2% Dec
All years Near solar maximum Near solar minimum
  1. Kp 0–2 Quiet camera in Stewart Island/Rakiura (Oban) Only under the auroral oval: northern Norway, Swedish and Finnish Lapland, Iceland, Alaska, northern Canada.
  2. Kp 3 Unsettled Bright in the Arctic; low on the horizon in central Scandinavia and southern Iceland.
  3. Kp 4 Active eye in Stewart Island/Rakiura (Oban) Overhead in the Arctic; low in the north from southern Norway, Sweden, Finland and northern Scotland.
  4. Kp 5 Minor storm (G1) Scotland, southern Scandinavia, the Baltic states, the northern US states and southern Canada.
  5. Kp 6 Moderate storm (G2) Northern England, Denmark, northern Germany and Poland, the US Midwest — often clearer in photos than to the eye.
  6. Kp 7 Strong storm (G3) Most of the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, Poland, Czechia; red glow in photos from France and the northern Alps.
  7. 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.
  8. 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).

The town pages in this region also cover 95 villages and districts nearby.

Smaller places