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Türkiye125 places

Northern Lights in Türkiye: Where and When to See Them

From Türkiye the aurora is mostly a camera sight: in severe storms (about Kp 7.3 or more) a red glow rises low over the horizon, as it did in May and October 2024.

Where the aurora is easiest to see

PlaceRegionKp neededKp for photosMagnetic latitude
BartınBartın Province9+7.337.2°
SinopSinop Province9+7.337.8°
ArtvinArtvin Province9+7.337.3°
ArdahanArdahan Province9+7.337.2°
SamsunSamsun Province9+7.737.1°
TrabzonTrabzon Province9+7.737.0°
OrduOrdu Province9+7.736.8°
EdirneEdirne Province9+7.736.9°

Largest cities

PlacePopulationKp needed
Istanbul15,701,6029+
Ankara3,517,1829+
Bursa3,101,8339+
İzmir2,938,2929+
Gaziantep2,222,4159+
Kayseri1,452,4589+
Esenyurt983,5719+
Eskişehir921,6309+

Storm watch: can you see the northern lights from Türkiye?

Rarely, but yes. In strong storms (about Kp 7.3 or more) the red upper layer of the aurora, 300–400 km up, rises above the northern horizon of Türkiye. Phone and camera sensors pick it up far more easily than the eye.

…

PlaceKp for photosKp for the eyePhoto nights since 1995Last time
Bartın 7.3 9+ 55 Oct 2026
Sinop 7.3 9+ 54 Oct 2026
Artvin 7.3 9+ 56 Oct 2026
Ardahan 7.3 9+ 56 Oct 2026
Samsun 7.7 9+ 34 Jan 2026
Trabzon 7.7 9+ 34 Jan 2026
Ordu 7.7 9+ 35 Jan 2026
Edirne 7.7 9+ 35 Jan 2026
Giresun 7.7 9+ 35 Jan 2026
Kastamonu 7.7 9+ 34 Jan 2026
Karabük 7.7 9+ 35 Jan 2026
Rize 7.7 9+ 34 Jan 2026

When it was last seen from Türkiye

Nights with enough activity for photos from Bartın during darkness (Kp 7.3 or more):

  • 10 October 2026 · Kp 7.3
  • 20 January 2026 · Kp 7.7
  • 19 January 2026 · Kp 8.7
  • 11 November 2025 · Kp 8.7
  • 16 April 2025 · Kp 7.7
  • 1 January 2025 · Kp 8.0
  • 10 October 2024 · Kp 8.7
  • 16 September 2024 · Kp 7.3
  • 11 May 2024 · Kp 7.7
  • 10 May 2024 · Kp 9.0

How to catch it from Türkiye

  1. Watch the forecast: you need about Kp 7.3 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.
  2. 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.
  3. 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.
  4. The best hours are usually 22:00–02:00 local time, but in big storms it can start right after dusk.
  1. Kp 0–2 Quiet 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 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) camera in Bartın 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).

Live sightings

Where visitors are reporting the aurora right now. A place climbs with every report and drops again as the reports age.

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    Regions of Türkiye