Aurora Borealis in Dalarna
Sweden · 60.41°, 15.42° · geomagnetic 59.4° · needs Kp 5
Tonight in Dalarna
52%
Peak chance of a visible display tonight, from the same model the Revon app runs. Dalarna needs Kp 5 to see anything at all, and tonight the forecast peaks at Kp 4.8. Short of the threshold, which is what most nights look like here.
Get the full 30-night forecast in Revon
Updated 2026-09-08 10:35 UTC
How often the aurora borealis reaches Dalarna
20.6 nights a year, averaged across 10.0 years of records
| Storm level | Nights / year |
|---|---|
| Kp 4 | 83.4 |
| Kp 5 | 28.7 |
| Kp 6 | 9.3 |
| Kp 7 | 3.2 |
| Kp 8 | 1.2 |
NOAA planetary Kp, 2016-04-02 to 2026-03-30
Worth watching through the dark half of the year
Kp 5 is a moderate storm — not an everyday event, but common enough that a patient observer in Dalarna sees the aurora borealis most winters.
Hours of true darkness, month by month
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12.1 | 10.2 | 7.6 | 2.8 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 6.2 | 9.4 | 11.6 | 12.6 |
Solar declination and hour angle at −18°
Nothing to see from May to August
Through those months the sun never falls more than 18° below the Dalarna horizon, so the sky never darkens fully. Plan around the darker half of the year.
Getting clear of the light
The sky over Dalarna reads Bortle 8. Getting clear of the built-up area makes a visible difference on a marginal night.
- 13 km north-west — around Borlänge kommun → Bortle 5
- 29 km south-west — around Ludvika kommun → Bortle 4
Falchi 2016 World Atlas (DOI: 10.5880/GFZ.1.4.2016.001)
The months that actually deliver
Counting only nights that were both stormy enough and dark enough, September, March and October came out ahead in Dalarna. That is storm season and darkness overlapping — the equinoxes tend to be geomagnetically active, and the nights are already long by then.
Darkest nights of the coming year
A bright moon washes out a weak display as effectively as street lighting. These new moons fall inside the Dalarna viewing season.
- 11 Sep 2026
- 11 Oct 2026
- 09 Nov 2026
- 09 Dec 2026
- 07 Jan 2027
- 06 Feb 2027
- 08 Mar 2027
Where it is close to a certainty
If you would rather plan a trip than wait for a storm, the nearest place with genuinely frequent aurora is Bodø, 766 km north in Norway.
| Dalarna | Bodø | |
|---|---|---|
| Kp needed | 5 | 3 |
| Nights per year | 20.6 | 171.4 |
| Geomagnetic latitude | 59.4° | 66.0° |
Confirmed reports from this area
94 verified sightings were logged within 300 km of Dalarna between 2015-01-01 and 2016-12-31. Rare is not the same as impossible.
Aurorasaurus verified positive reports
Where the horizon opens up near Dalarna
The display sits low on the northern horizon, so what beats a better forecast is open ground facing that way. Height gets you above the town glow; water gives you an unbroken skyline. These are within a short drive of Dalarna.
- Bältehorn — hill5.1 km west-north-west
- Dammyran — lake7.1 km north-north-west
- Ulvberget — hill7.3 km west
- Boberget — mountain7.6 km north-west
- Tjärnaberget — mountain9.2 km north-north-west
- Bjusan — lake9.8 km north-north-west
Places from GeoNames (CC BY 4.0)
Where to stay
Anywhere on the outskirts of Dalarna will do; what matters is being able to step outside and check the sky without a drive first.
- Best Western Gustaf Wasa Hotel 7.7 km from the centre
- First Hotel Brage 7.9 km from the centre
- Scandic Borlänge 8.0 km from the centre
- Quality Hotel Galaxen 8.0 km from the centre
Places from GeoNames (CC BY 4.0) — confirm before booking
The last nights it was visible here
Nights in the last decade when the storm was strong enough for Dalarna and the sky was dark enough to show it.
| Date | Peak |
|---|---|
| 2026-03-24 | Kp 5.0 |
| 2026-03-23 | Kp 5.0 |
| 2026-03-22 | Kp 6.67 |
| 2026-03-21 | Kp 6.0 |
| 2026-03-20 | Kp 7.0 |
NOAA planetary Kp
Aurora forecasts across Dalarna
All 3 places in Dalarna with a forecast page, and the Kp each one needs.
Know when it is worth going outside
Revon watches the Dalarna forecast and pushes an alert when the odds for tonight clear your threshold — no checking, no guessing.
Common questions about the aurora borealis in Dalarna
Can you see the aurora borealis from Dalarna?
Yes. On the last 10.0 years of NOAA Kp records, Dalarna had about 20.6 nights a year when the storm was strong enough and the sky dark enough at the same time.
What Kp index do you need to see the aurora borealis in Dalarna?
Kp 5. Dalarna sits at geomagnetic latitude 59.4°, and the auroral oval only reaches that far from the pole once activity hits Kp 5. Storms that size occur about 28.7 nights a year.
When is the best time of year to see the aurora borealis in Dalarna?
September, March and October. Those months scored highest once both conditions are counted together: geomagnetic activity and enough hours of real darkness. From May to August the sky over Dalarna never gets fully dark, so nothing is visible however strong the storm.
Where can you escape the light pollution near Dalarna?
The centre of Dalarna reads Bortle 8. The nearest sky at Bortle 4 is about 29 km south-west around Ludvika kommun. On a marginal night that drive matters more than the forecast does.
Where is the nearest place to Dalarna with reliable aurora borealis?
Bodø, Norway — 766 km north. It needs only Kp 3 and averages 171.4 viable nights a year against 20.6 in Dalarna.
Nearby towns
Forecasts for places within reach of Dalarna.
- 🇸🇪 Ludvika - Sweden32 km
- 🇸🇪 Sandviken - Sweden77 km
- 🇸🇪 Gävle - Sweden99 km
- 🇸🇪 Köping - Sweden105 km
- 🇸🇪 Västerås - Sweden109 km
- 🇸🇪 Enköping - Sweden126 km
- 🇸🇪 Örebro - Sweden127 km
- 🇸🇪 Karlskoga - Sweden131 km