Live aurora forecast · Iceland

Will I see the
northern lights tonight?

Reading the sky…

Fetching live data from space weather satellites and the weather models.

Live · updated – · refreshes on its own

Space weather right now

What the sun is sending us

The aurora starts 150 million km away. These readings come from satellites a million km towards the sun — about an hour's warning of what reaches Iceland.

Aurora activity–
–Kp index · 0–9
Solar wind speed–
–km/s
Magnetic field Bz–
–nT
Particle density–
–protons / cm³

Fast solar wind and a southward (negative) Bz open the door — that's when the aurora really dances. Last 6 hours shown under each reading.

Where to look

The best places to see it

Aurora activity, cloud cover, darkness, moonlight and light pollution combined, hour by hour. Press play to watch the night unfold.

Now
Hour by hour

Tonight at Þingvellir

Tap a place on the map to change it. Green is your chance of seeing the aurora, grey is cloud, and the dark band is when it's dark enough.

The next three days

Aurora activity forecast

NOAA's planetary Kp forecast in 3-hour steps. In Iceland, even Kp 2–3 can give a beautiful show when the sky is clear and dark.

Quiet 0–2Active 3–4Storm 5+Dark hours in Reykjavík
From the people who hunt it every night

How to actually see it

01

Get away from the lights

Even 20 minutes outside Reykjavík makes a huge difference. Faint aurora disappears in street light.

02

Clouds matter most

A clear sky with Kp 2 beats a cloudy sky with Kp 5. Follow the gaps in the clouds — that's what the map is for.

03

Be patient

The aurora comes in waves. It can be quiet for an hour and then fill the sky for ten minutes. Give it time.

04

Let your eyes adjust

Give it 15–20 minutes in the dark and keep your phone screen dim. Your eyes see more than you think.

05

Camera settings

Tripod, wide lens, ISO 1600–3200, 5–10 second exposure, focus on infinity. Phones: use night mode and hold still.

06

Dress for standing still

Warm layers, hat, gloves and good shoes. It's colder when you're waiting than when you're walking.

Private northern lights hunt

We read this every night.
Let us chase it for you.

A local driver who follows the clouds and the solar wind, a warm and silent electric car, and just your group. If the forecast says go, we go.

Plan my hunt →

How this forecast works

Viewing chance

For every place and hour we combine five things: aurora activity (NOAA's OVATION model for the next hour, then the Kp forecast with Iceland's position under the auroral oval), cloud cover (low cloud counts most), darkness (the sun at least 6–12° below the horizon), moonlight and light pollution.

It's an estimate, not a promise — the aurora can appear or fade within minutes.

Data sources