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Northern Lights in West Virginia, United States
In West Virginia the aurora is visible from about Kp 6.3, first near Wheeling. Morgantown has the darkest skies among the larger places.
Weather in West Virginia
General forecast for Wheeling, the main town in West Virginia. Tonight's cloud cover for every town is on its aurora page.
Planning further ahead? See the hour-by-hour weather forecast for Wheeling on Atlas of Seasons.
| Place | Kp needed | Kp for photos | Look towards | Light pollution | Population |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wheeling | 6.7 | 5 | N | City sky | 27,648 |
| Parkersburg | 7 | 5.3 | N | City sky | 30,991 |
| Morgantown | 7 | 5.3 | N | Bright suburban sky | 30,708 |
| Fairmont | 7 | 5.3 | N | Bright suburban sky | 18,733 |
| Martinsburg | 7 | 5.3 | N | Bright suburban sky | 17,700 |
| Clarksburg | 7 | 5.3 | N | Bright suburban sky | 16,152 |
| Huntington | 7.3 | 5.7 | N | Bright suburban sky | 48,638 |
| Charleston | 7.3 | 5.7 | N | City sky | 46,838 |
| Beckley | 7.7 | 6 | N | City sky | 17,056 |
Best months in West Virginia
Share of nights 2005–2025 that were dark, active enough here and mostly clear.
September has been the best month (2% of nights), followed by October (0.9%).
All years Near solar maximum Near solar minimum
- Kp 0–2 Quiet Only under the auroral oval: northern Norway, Swedish and Finnish Lapland, Iceland, Alaska, northern Canada.
- Kp 3 Unsettled 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 Wheeling 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) eye in Wheeling 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).
The town pages in this region also cover 1,686 villages and districts nearby.
Smaller places
- BluefieldKp 8
- BuckhannonKp 7.3
- Charles TownKp 7.3
- ElkinsKp 7.3
- FayettevilleKp 7.7
- GraftonKp 7
- HintonKp 7.7
- KeyserKp 7
- KingwoodKp 7
- LewisburgKp 7.7
- MadisonKp 7.7
- MoorefieldKp 7.3
- MoundsvilleKp 6.7
- New MartinsvilleKp 7
- PetersburgKp 7.3
- PhilippiKp 7
- Point PleasantKp 7
- PrincetonKp 8
- RipleyKp 7.3
- St. AlbansKp 7.3
- South CharlestonKp 7.3
- SpencerKp 7.3
- SummersvilleKp 7.3
- Teays ValleyKp 7.3
- ViennaKp 7
- WeirtonKp 6.3
- Weirton HeightsKp 6.3
- WellsburgKp 6.7
- WestonKp 7
- WilliamsonKp 7.7
- WinfieldKp 7.3