Aurora Borealis in Iceland
Iceland · 64.33°, -21.49° · geomagnetic 69.0° · needs Kp 3
Tonight in Iceland
42%
Peak chance of a visible display tonight, from the same model the Revon app runs. Iceland needs Kp 3 before anything clears the northern horizon, and tonight the forecast peaks at Kp 5.7 — comfortably over the line.
Updated 2026-08-02 20:20 UTC
The next 30 nights in Iceland
Every night to come, scored the same way as tonight. The best of the open week is Sunday 2 Aug at 42%. 4 of the seven reach the Kp 3 that Iceland needs, topping out at Kp 5.7. The 23 nights past the seven-day window move with the 27-day solar rotation and are updated daily in the app.
Nights 8–30 unlock in the Revon app
Revon aurora model over the NOAA Kp forecast and 27-day outlook
How often the aurora borealis reaches Iceland
112.8 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
You are inside the auroral oval
Iceland sits far enough northern that quiet conditions are enough. What limits you here is cloud and moonlight, not geomagnetic activity.
Hours of true darkness, month by month
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12.3 | 10.1 | 6.9 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 5.1 | 9.1 | 11.8 | 12.9 |
Solar declination and hour angle at −18°
Nothing to see from April to August
Through those months the sun never falls more than 18° below the Iceland horizon, so the sky never darkens fully. Plan around the darker half of the year.
Getting clear of the light
Iceland is small enough that its own lights are a minor problem — the centre reads Bortle 4. Walking to the edge of town is often escape enough.
- 9 km south — around Kjósarhreppur → Bortle 4
- 9 km south — around Kjósarhreppur → 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, March, September and October came out ahead in Iceland. 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 Iceland 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
Akureyri is close enough to reach and return in a night — 219 km north-east — and needs only Kp 3.
| Iceland | Akureyri | |
|---|---|---|
| Kp needed | 3 | 3 |
| Nights per year | 112.8 | 171.4 |
| Geomagnetic latitude | 69.0° | 69.7° |
Confirmed reports from this area
250 verified sightings were logged within 300 km of Iceland 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 Iceland
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 Iceland.
- Hvítanes — headland3.4 km north
- Hvammsvík — bay4.4 km north-west
- Þyrilsnes — headland4.5 km north-north-east
- Þrándarstaðafjall — mountain4.6 km east
- Hvammsey — island5.2 km north-west
- Geirshólmi — island5.7 km north-north-east
Places from GeoNames (CC BY 4.0)
Places to watch from
Named viewpoints and reserves near Iceland that sit outside the worst of the light. Each puts the northern horizon over open ground instead of over rooftops.
- Glymur 12.8 km
- Þingvellir 19.6 km
- Öxarárfoss 19.6 km
- Bird watching 21.0 km
- Útsýnispallur við Hrafnagjá 24.5 km
Places from OpenStreetMap contributors
The last nights it was visible here
Nights in the last decade when the storm was strong enough for Iceland and the sky was dark enough to show it.
| Date | Peak |
|---|---|
| 2026-03-30 | Kp 3.0 |
| 2026-03-29 | Kp 3.33 |
| 2026-03-28 | Kp 3.67 |
| 2026-03-27 | Kp 3.33 |
| 2026-03-26 | Kp 3.0 |
NOAA planetary Kp
Aurora forecasts across Iceland
All 3 regions in Iceland with a forecast page, and the Kp each one needs.
- Capital RegionKp 3
- NortheastKp 3
- Southern PeninsulaKp 3
Know when it is worth going outside
Revon watches the Iceland forecast and pushes an alert when the odds for tonight clear your threshold — no checking, no guessing.
Common questions about the aurora borealis in Iceland
Can you see the aurora borealis from Iceland?
Yes. On the last 10.0 years of NOAA Kp records, Iceland had about 112.8 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 Iceland?
Kp 3. Iceland sits at geomagnetic latitude 69.0°, and the auroral oval only reaches that far from the pole once activity hits Kp 3.
When is the best time of year to see the aurora borealis in Iceland?
March, September and October. Those months scored highest once both conditions are counted together: geomagnetic activity and enough hours of real darkness. From April to August the sky over Iceland never gets fully dark, so nothing is visible however strong the storm.
Where can you escape the light pollution near Iceland?
The centre of Iceland reads Bortle 4. The nearest sky at Bortle 4 is about 9 km south around Kjósarhreppur. On a marginal night that drive matters more than the forecast does.
Where is the nearest place to Iceland with reliable aurora borealis?
Akureyri, Iceland — 219 km north-east. It needs only Kp 3 and averages 171.4 viable nights a year against 112.8 in Iceland.
Nearby towns
Forecasts for places within reach of Iceland.