Värmland County, SwedenMagnetic latitude 57.3°Population 1,020150 m above sea level
Northern lights in Ekshärad
From Ekshärad the aurora is visible on most active nights — first low to the north, from about Kp 2.7.
Right now
Activity is high enough for a camera right now: point your phone north, low over the horizon.
Latest measured half-hour activity worldwide: Hp30 1.3.
Updates every minute while this page is open. Ground data: GFZ Potsdam Hp30 index (CC BY 4.0).
Tonight in one minute
Yes — good chance tonight
- Solar activity Strong enough: Kp 4 expected, 2.7 needed here.
- Sky Mostly clear (19% cloud).
- Darkness Dark from 19:24 to 06:19.
What to do: Go somewhere dark around 02:00, give your eyes 15 minutes to adjust and look north, low over the horizon.
- Detailed forecast Fri 16 4 Good chance · Kp 4
- Sat 17 2 Photos only · Kp 2
- Sun 18 1.7 Photos only · Kp 1.7
- 27-day trend Mon 19 2 Photos only · 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 Unlikely · Kp 2
- Mon 26 2 Unlikely · Kp 2
- Tue 27 2 Photos only · Kp 2
- Wed 28 2 Photos only · Kp 2
- Thu 29 2 Photos only · Kp 2
- Fri 30 5 Good chance · Kp 5
- Sat 31 5 Good chance · Kp 5
- Sun 1 5 Possible · Kp 5
- Mon 2 3 Possible · Kp 3
- Tue 3 2 Unlikely · Kp 2
- Wed 4 2 Unlikely · Kp 2
- Thu 5 3 Possible · Kp 3
- Fri 6 3 Possible · Kp 3
- Sat 7 3 Possible · Kp 3
Saturday 17 October — Good chance · Kp 4 · best around 03:30 · Forecast cloud: 19%. · 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 01:16 local time
Excellent chance
Best around 02:00. Forecast max Kp 4.0 (this place needs 2.7), average cloud 19%.
- Dark enough
- 19:24 – 06:19
- Sunset
- 17:51 · sunrise 07:53
- Moon
- 34% · ↑ 16:20 · ↓ 20:28
- Kp neededKp index: a 0–9 measure of geomagnetic activity. The higher it is, the further from the poles the aurora reaches.
- Kp 2.7
- Kp for photos
- In photos: from Kp 1 (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, 01 | Sat, 04 | Sat, 19 | Sat, 22 | Sun, 01 | Sun, 04 | Sun, 19 | Sun, 22 | Mon, 01 | Mon, 04 | Mon, 19 | Mon, 22 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low cloud | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 100% | 2% | 1% |
| Mid cloud | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| High cloud | 0% | 0% | 0% | 17% | 4% | 8% | 3% | 27% | 5% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Temperature | 4 °C | 3 °C | 3 °C | 1 °C | 0 °C | -1 °C | 3 °C | 1 °C | 0 °C | -1 °C | 3 °C | 1 °C |
| Feels like | 2 °C | 0 °C | 1 °C | -2 °C | -3 °C | -4 °C | 1 °C | -2 °C | -2 °C | -3 °C | 0 °C | -2 °C |
| Wind | 1 m/s | 1 m/s | 1 m/s | 1 m/s | 1 m/s | 1 m/s | 1 m/s | 0 m/s | 0 m/s | 0 m/s | 2 m/s | 2 m/s |
| Visibility | 49 km | 49 km | 50 km | 50 km | 50 km | 50 km | 50 km | 50 km | 49 km | 0.1 km | 4.0 km | 2.7 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?
Tell others in Värmland County. Reports from real visitors move a place up the live ranking.
Reports are anonymous: we do not store your IP address or location. One report per place every few hours.
What you would see from Ekshärad
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 | Faint glow, mostly on camera | 8° | 16° | 578 km |
| 3 | Visible to the north | 15° | 27° | 356 km |
| 4 | Visible to the north | 37° | 55° | 133 km |
| 5 | Overhead and all around | – | – | – |
| 6 | Overhead and all around | – | – | – |
| 7 | Overhead, and also to the south | – | – | – |
| 8 | Overhead, and also to the south | – | – | – |
| 9 | Overhead, and also to the south | – | – | – |
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 camera in Ekshärad Only under the auroral oval: northern Norway, Swedish and Finnish Lapland, Iceland, Alaska, northern Canada.
- Kp 3 Unsettled eye in Ekshärad 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) 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
Pristine dark sky. Almost no artificial light: faint aurora and the Milky Way are easy to see.
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 Ekshärad
Share of nights 2005–2025 that were dark, active enough here and mostly clear.
March has been the best month (21% of nights), followed by September (21%).
| Month | Good nights | Clear nights | Darkness | Low / high |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| September | 21% | 50% | 7.9 h | 7° / 15°C |
| October | 14% | 37% | 10.6 h | 3° / 8°C |
| November | 11% | 28% | 13.0 h | -1° / 2°C |
| December | 16% | 31% | 14.1 h | -6° / -2°C |
| January | 13% | 32% | 13.6 h | -8° / -3°C |
| February | 18% | 35% | 11.5 h | -8° / -2°C |
| March | 21% | 47% | 9.1 h | -5° / 3°C |
| April | 21% | 58% | 5.4 h | 0° / 9°C |
Darkness through the year
- No full darkness (Sun 12° below the horizon) from 10 May to 2 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 Ekshärad 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 5.7
- 15 May 2026 · Kp 6.0
- 3 April 2026 · Kp 5.7
- 2 April 2026 · Kp 5.0
- 22 March 2026 · Kp 6.7
- 20 March 2026 · Kp 7.0
- 13 March 2026 · Kp 6.0
Practical information
- Nearest airport
- Hagfors Airport (HFS) · 18 km
Scandinavian Mountains Airport (SCR) · 116 km - Typical low / high in March
- -5° / 3°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
- From 1 December to 31 March, cars must use winter tyres (Alpine-marked or studded) with at least 3 mm of tread whenever winter road conditions apply. Studded tyres are allowed from 1 October to 15 April, and at other times when winter conditions apply or are expected. Trafikverket runs the road traffic information service. Road conditions
- Access to land
- Allemansrätten lets anyone walk and stay temporarily on others' land, including pitching a tent for a night or two, provided you don't disturb and don't destroy. It does not cover gardens next to homes, crops or grazing land, or motorised off-road driving. National parks and nature reserves can have stricter rules.
- Official space-weather service
- Swedish Institute of Space Physics (IRF), Kiruna: all-sky camera and IRF Aurora Alert app
- Weather service
- SMHI (Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute)
Questions and answers
What Kp do you need to see the aurora in Ekshärad?
From Ekshärad the aurora is visible on most active nights — first low to the north, from about Kp 2.7.
Which way should I look for the aurora in Ekshärad?
Face north (about 358° from true north). At Kp 2.7 the lower edge of the aurora sits roughly 15° above the horizon; stronger activity lifts it higher and further across the sky.
What is the best month to see the aurora in Ekshärad?
Over 2005–2025, March gave the best odds in Ekshärad (21% of nights dark, active enough and mostly clear), followed by September (21%).
When is the aurora season in Ekshärad?
From 10 May to 2 August the sky in Ekshärad never gets dark enough. Outside that period the aurora can be seen whenever activity and clouds allow.
Is there much light pollution in Ekshärad?
Almost no artificial light: faint aurora and the Milky Way are easy to see.
When was the aurora last possible in Ekshärad?
Activity last reached storm level (Kp 5 or more) during darkness in Ekshärad on 10 October 2026 (Kp 7.0) — 881 such nights since 1995. Here the aurora also appears on many quieter nights.
Also covered by this forecast
Villages and districts around Ekshärad share its forecast: within a few kilometres the sky, the Kp needed and the best direction are the same.
- Nore 1 km
- Näs 1 km
- Älvdebäck 1 km
- Kyrkheden 2 km
- Halla 2 km
- Ekshärad socken 2 km
- Ekshärad 2 km
- Yggenäs 3 km
- Mossberg 3 km
- Hälle 4 km
- Framnäs 4 km
- Sälje 5 km
- Råda 5 km
- Hole 5 km
- Hara 5 km
- Hamra 5 km
- Solberg 6 km
- Kullen 6 km
- Basterud 6 km
- Västra Tönnet 7 km
- Tönnet 7 km
- Öjenäs 7 km
- Bergsäng 8 km
- Stensnäs 9 km
- Överberga 9 km
- Hornäs 9 km
- Ämtbjörk 9 km
- Stackerud 11 km
- Södra Loffstrand 11 km
- Norra Loffstrand 11 km
- Norra Skoga 12 km
- Fastnässätern 14 km
- Fastnäs 14 km
- Åstrand 15 km
- Segenäs 16 km
- Södra Torp 18 km
- Segenssätern 18 km
- Nain 18 km
- Ennarbol 18 km
- Åstrandssätern 18 km