Iowa, United StatesMagnetic latitude 50.0°Population 1,903343 m above sea level
Can you see the northern lights in Leon?
From Leon the aurora is seen only during geomagnetic storms (about Kp 6.3 or more), usually as a glow low in the north. Cameras often pick it up before the eye does. Since 1995 that level (Kp 6.3) was reached during darkness here on 150 nights.
Right now
Quiet right now (Kp 0.0).
Latest measured half-hour activity worldwide: Hp30 0.3.
Updates every minute while this page is open. Ground data: GFZ Potsdam Hp30 index (CC BY 4.0).
Tonight in one minute
Not tonight
- Solar activity Too weak: Kp 2.7 expected, 6.3 needed here.
- Sky Mostly clear (4% cloud).
- Darkness Dark from 19:29 to 06:31.
What to do: Not tonight — your next chance is shown just below.
Monday 19 October — Photos only · Kp 4.7 · best around 23:30 · Forecast cloud: 34%. · Reliability: medium
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 21:06 local time
Unlikely
Best around 21:00. Forecast max Kp 2.7 (this place needs 6.3), average cloud 4%.
- Dark enough
- 19:29 – 06:31
- Sunset
- 18:29 · sunrise 07:30
- Moon
- 54% · ↑ 15:22 · ↓ 00:20
- Kp neededKp index: a 0–9 measure of geomagnetic activity. The higher it is, the further from the poles the aurora reaches.
- Kp 6.3
- Kp for photos
- In photos: from Kp 4.7 (a red glow low in the north).
- Look towards
- north (4°)
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, 21 | Mon, 00 | Mon, 03 | Mon, 06 | Mon, 21 | Tue, 00 | Tue, 03 | Tue, 06 | Tue, 21 | Wed, 00 | Wed, 03 | Wed, 06 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low cloud | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Mid cloud | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 33% | 14% | 9% | 14% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| High cloud | 3% | 12% | 46% | 93% | 37% | 17% | 6% | 1% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Temperature | 10 °C | 8 °C | 7 °C | 6 °C | 12 °C | 10 °C | 9 °C | 8 °C | 14 °C | 12 °C | 11 °C | 10 °C |
| Feels like | 8 °C | 6 °C | 4 °C | 4 °C | 12 °C | 10 °C | 8 °C | 7 °C | 14 °C | 12 °C | 11 °C | 9 °C |
| Wind | 4 m/s | 3 m/s | 3 m/s | 3 m/s | 2 m/s | 2 m/s | 2 m/s | 2 m/s | 3 m/s | 3 m/s | 3 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 Leon
The aurora only shows through clear skies, so the weather matters as much as the Kp index. Here is the general forecast for Leon: temperature, wind and the chance of rain for the coming days.
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What you would see from Leon
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 | Below the horizon | -2° | 2° | 1,390 km |
| 3 | Below the horizon | 0° | 4° | 1,168 km |
| 4 | Below the horizon | 2° | 7° | 945 km |
| 5 | Faint glow, mostly on camera | 5° | 12° | 723 km |
| 6 | Faint glow, mostly on camera | 10° | 19° | 500 km |
| 7 | Visible to the north | 19° | 34° | 278 km |
| 8 | Visible to the north | 62° | 74° | 56 km |
| 9 | Overhead and all around | – | – | – |
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 Only under the auroral oval: northern Norway, Swedish and Finnish Lapland, Iceland, Alaska, northern Canada.
- Kp 3 Unsettled next 24 h 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) camera in Leon Scotland, southern Scandinavia, the Baltic states, the northern US states and southern Canada.
- Kp 6 Moderate storm (G2) eye in Leon 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 north-west. 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 horizon towards the north is open (terrain below 0.2°), 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 Leon
Share of nights 2005–2025 that were dark, active enough here and mostly clear.
September has been the best month (1% of nights), followed by May (1%).
| Month | Good nights | Clear nights | Darkness | Low / high |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| September | 1% | 78% | 9.6 h | 14° / 26°C |
| October | 0.9% | 69% | 10.9 h | 6° / 18°C |
| November | 0.6% | 63% | 12.0 h | -1° / 10°C |
| December | 0.2% | 49% | 12.4 h | -6° / 2°C |
| January | 0.3% | 53% | 12.3 h | -10° / -1°C |
| February | 0.2% | 59% | 11.0 h | -8° / 2°C |
| March | 0.2% | 56% | 9.9 h | -1° / 11°C |
| April | 0.8% | 59% | 8.5 h | 4° / 17°C |
Aurora nights in Leon since 1995
Nights when Kp reached 6.3 or more while it was dark here.
Most recent strong nights
- 3 July 2026 · Kp 7.0
- 21 March 2026 · Kp 6.3
- 20 March 2026 · Kp 7.0
- 20 January 2026 · Kp 7.3
- 19 January 2026 · Kp 7.7
- 12 November 2025 · Kp 7.3
- 11 November 2025 · Kp 8.7
- 5 November 2025 · Kp 6.7
Practical information
- Nearest airport
- Des Moines International Airport (DSM) · 89 km
- Typical low / high in September
- 14° / 26°C
- What to wear
- Cool nights: layers, a windproof jacket, hat and gloves for standing still outside. Full clothing guide
- Emergency number
- 911
- Winter driving
- Tyre and chain rules are set at state level; check Alaska 511 (511.alaska.gov, Alaska DOT&PF) for Alaska roads, or the relevant state's 511 service elsewhere. Road conditions
- Access to land
- There is no general right to roam; trespass law is set by each state, so stay on public land (national parks, national forests, BLM land) or get the landowner's permission, and follow each park's night-time and parking rules.
- Official space-weather service
- NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center (aurora dashboard)
- Weather service
- National Weather Service (NOAA)
Questions and answers
What Kp do you need to see the aurora in Leon?
From Leon the aurora is seen only during geomagnetic storms (about Kp 6.3 or more), usually as a glow low in the north. Cameras often pick it up before the eye does.
Which way should I look for the aurora in Leon?
Face north (about 4° from true north). At Kp 6.3 the lower edge of the aurora sits roughly 19° above the horizon; stronger activity lifts it higher and further across the sky.
What is the best month to see the aurora in Leon?
Over 2005–2025, September gave the best odds in Leon (1% of nights dark, active enough and mostly clear), followed by May (1%).
When is the aurora season in Leon?
Leon gets dark enough for the aurora all year round, though the long winter nights give the most hours to watch.
Is there much light pollution in Leon?
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 north-west.
When was the aurora last possible in Leon?
The most recent night in our data when activity reached the level Leon needs, during darkness, was 3 July 2026 (Kp 7.0). It has happened on 150 nights since 1995.
Also covered by this forecast
Villages and districts around Leon share its forecast: within a few kilometres the sky, the Kp needed and the best direction are the same.
- City of Leon 1 km
- Decatur County 3 km
- Township of Center 4 km
- Decatur 7 km
- Township of Eden 7 km
- Blockly 9 km
- Township of Decatur 9 km
- Township of Burrell 10 km
- Barrell 11 km
- Kingston 11 km
- Davis City 12 km
- Township of High Point 12 km
- Terre Haute 12 km
- Township of Franklin 13 km
- High Point 13 km
- Township of Woodland 13 km
- Brucewell 14 km
- Woodland 14 km
- Garden Grove 15 km
- Township of Hamilton 15 km
- Township of Long Creek 15 km
- Van Wert 15 km
- New Buda 16 km
- Township of Garden Grove 17 km
- Township of New Buda 17 km
- Township of Grand River 18 km
- Morgan 18 km
- Township of Morgan 18 km
- Pleasanton 18 km
- Township of Bloomington 19 km
- Grand River 20 km
- Lamoni 20 km
- Le Roy 20 km
- City of Lamoni 21 km
- Township of Richland 22 km
- Tuskeego 22 km
- Wataga 22 km
- Township of Fayette 23 km
- Andover 23 km
- Adel 24 km