Scotland, United KingdomMagnetic latitude 56.6°Population 7,1503 m above sea level
Northern lights in Kirkwall
From Kirkwall the aurora is visible on most active nights — first low to the north, from about Kp 3.
Right now
It is still light here. Darkness starts at 19:30.
Updates every minute while this page is open.
Tonight in one minute
Not tonight
- Solar activity Enough for a camera: Kp 2.7 expected, 1.3 needed for photos, 3 for the eye.
- Sky Overcast (87% cloud).
- Darkness Dark from 19:30 to 06:25.
What to do: Not tonight — your next chance is shown just below.
- Detailed forecast Fri 16 2.7 Unlikely · Kp 2.7
- Sat 17 1.7 Unlikely · Kp 1.7
- Sun 18 1.7 Photos only · Kp 1.7
- 27-day trend Mon 19 2 Photos only · Kp 2
- Tue 20 3 Possible · 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 Photos only · Kp 2
- Mon 26 2 Unlikely · Kp 2
- Tue 27 2 Unlikely · Kp 2
- Wed 28 2 Unlikely · Kp 2
- Thu 29 2 Unlikely · Kp 2
- Fri 30 5 Possible · Kp 5
- Sat 31 5 Possible · 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
Thursday 22 October — Possible · Kp 4 · best around 00:00 · Forecast cloud: 77%. · 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 14:44 local time
Unlikely
Best around 04:00. Forecast max Kp 2.7 (this place needs 3), average cloud 87%.
- Dark enough
- 19:30 – 06:25
- Sunset
- 18:02 · sunrise 07:53
- Moon
- 31% · ↑ 15:40 · ↓ 19:40
- Kp neededKp index: a 0–9 measure of geomagnetic activity. The higher it is, the further from the poles the aurora reaches.
- Kp 3
- Kp for photos
- In photos: from Kp 1.3 (a red glow low in the north).
- Look towards
- north (354°)
Clearer skies nearby tonight
Forecast cloud during tonight's darkness: 87% here. The clearest option within 100 km is about 100 km to the south, with 56%. Open in OpenStreetMap
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 Kirkwall
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 | 6° | 14° | 656 km |
| 3 | Visible to the north | 12° | 22° | 434 km |
| 4 | Visible to the north | 25° | 42° | 211 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 Kirkwall Only under the auroral oval: northern Norway, Swedish and Finnish Lapland, Iceland, Alaska, northern Canada.
- Kp 3 Unsettled next 24 h eye in Kirkwall 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
Dark rural sky. Little artificial light. Faint displays are visible once your eyes have adapted.
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 is open (terrain below 1.4°), 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 Kirkwall
Share of nights 2005–2025 that were dark, active enough here and mostly clear.
September has been the best month (7% of nights), followed by April (6%).
| Month | Good nights | Clear nights | Darkness | Low / high |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| September | 7% | 16% | 7.9 h | 11° / 14°C |
| October | 3% | 10% | 10.8 h | 10° / 12°C |
| November | 3% | 5% | 12.8 h | 8° / 9°C |
| December | 1% | 4% | 14.0 h | 6° / 8°C |
| January | 1% | 4% | 13.3 h | 5° / 7°C |
| February | 3% | 7% | 11.5 h | 5° / 7°C |
| March | 4% | 10% | 9.1 h | 5° / 7°C |
| April | 6% | 16% | 5.8 h | 6° / 9°C |
Darkness through the year
- No full darkness (Sun 12° below the horizon) from 14 May to 29 July — 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 Kirkwall 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
- 22 March 2026 · Kp 6.7
- 20 March 2026 · Kp 7.0
- 13 March 2026 · Kp 6.0
- 3 March 2026 · Kp 5.0
Where to watch near Kirkwall
-
Wideford Hill
Hill just west of Kirkwall with a wide view north over the Bay of Firth. · about 6 km · Open in OpenStreetMap
-
Ring of Brodgar
Neolithic stone circle on Visit Orkney's aurora list, giving iconic foreground silhouettes. · about 18 km · Open in OpenStreetMap
-
Broch of Gurness
Iron Age broch on the north coast of Mainland facing Eynhallow Sound and Rousay. · about 24 km · Open in OpenStreetMap
-
Brough of Birsay
Tidal island at the northwest tip of Mainland with an unobstructed north horizon. · about 37 km · Open in OpenStreetMap
Local knowledge
- Visit Orkney names the north isles as perhaps the best locations thanks to minimal light pollution and low-lying land.
- All of Visit Orkney's recommended spots have clear northward views and nearby parking.
- Follow the Orkney Aurora Group on Facebook, Space Weather Live or AuroraWatch UK for alerts.
- Cameras often record far more colour than the eye sees, so a faint grey-green glow may look vivid in a photo.
- Dress in warm layers and bring a flask, since displays can last into the early morning.
The causeway to the Brough of Birsay is only passable at low tide; never cross in the dark or on a rising tide.
Keep to paths at the Ring of Brodgar and do not touch or climb the stones.
Practical information
- Nearest airport
- Kirkwall Airport (KOI) · 4 km
- Typical low / high in September
- 11° / 14°C
- What to wear
- Cool nights: layers, a windproof jacket, hat and gloves for standing still outside. Full clothing guide
- Emergency number
- 999 / 112
- Winter driving
- Winter tyres are not legally required anywhere in the UK (minimum tread 1.6 mm); check Traffic Scotland (trafficscotland.org) for Scottish trunk roads and National Highways for England's motorways and major A-roads. Road conditions
- Access to land
- In Scotland the Scottish Outdoor Access Code gives access rights over most land and inland water at any time of day or night (including responsible wild camping), provided you act responsibly and keep away from buildings; in England and Wales the CRoW Act right of access covers only mapped open access land, on foot, and excludes camping and driving unless the landowner allows it.
- Official space-weather service
- Met Office Space Weather (incl. aurora forecast)
- Weather service
- Met Office
Questions and answers
What Kp do you need to see the aurora in Kirkwall?
From Kirkwall the aurora is visible on most active nights — first low to the north, from about Kp 3.
Which way should I look for the aurora in Kirkwall?
Face north (about 354° from true north). At Kp 3 the lower edge of the aurora sits roughly 12° above the horizon; stronger activity lifts it higher and further across the sky.
What is the best month to see the aurora in Kirkwall?
Over 2005–2025, September gave the best odds in Kirkwall (7% of nights dark, active enough and mostly clear), followed by April (6%).
When is the aurora season in Kirkwall?
From 14 May to 29 July the sky in Kirkwall never gets dark enough. Outside that period the aurora can be seen whenever activity and clouds allow.
Is there much light pollution in Kirkwall?
Little artificial light. Faint displays are visible once your eyes have adapted.
When was the aurora last possible in Kirkwall?
Activity last reached storm level (Kp 5 or more) during darkness in Kirkwall on 10 October 2026 (Kp 7.0) — 895 such nights since 1995. Here the aurora also appears on many quieter nights.
Also covered by this forecast
Villages and districts around Kirkwall share its forecast: within a few kilometres the sky, the Kp needed and the best direction are the same.
- St Ola 1 km
- Hatston 1 km
- Scapa 3 km
- Orkney Islands 3 km
- St Ola 3 km
- Greenigoe 5 km
- Smerquoy 5 km
- Tankerness 6 km
- Balfour 6 km
- Cursiter 7 km
- Nether Button 8 km
- Finstown 9 km
- Gorseness 9 km
- Coubister 9 km
- Saint Mary's 10 km
- St Mary's 10 km
- Smoogro 10 km
- Foubister 10 km
- Heddle 10 km
- Isbister 10 km
- Orphir 11 km
- Bimbister 13 km
- Deerness 13 km
- Cornquoy 13 km
- Tingwall 13 km
- The Breck 13 km
- Redland 14 km
- Woodwick 14 km
- Georth 15 km
- Appietown 15 km
- Corrigall 15 km
- Corston 15 km
- Brough 15 km
- Netherbrough 15 km
- Burray Village 16 km
- Evie 17 km
- Brinian 17 km
- Stenso 17 km
- Knarston 17 km
- Saint Margaret's Hope 18 km