Aurora Borealis in Norrbotten
Sweden · 66.15°, 21.39° · geomagnetic 63.9° · needs Kp 3
Tonight in Norrbotten
37%
Peak chance of a visible display tonight, from the same model the Revon app runs. Norrbotten 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 Norrbotten
Every night to come, scored the same way as tonight. The best of the open week is Sunday 2 Aug at 37%. 4 of the seven reach the Kp 3 that Norrbotten 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
See all 30 nights for Norrbotten
Revon aurora model over the NOAA Kp forecast and 27-day outlook
How often the aurora borealis reaches Norrbotten
106.8 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
Norrbotten 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12.4 | 10.0 | 6.5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 4.3 | 9.0 | 11.8 | 13.1 |
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 Norrbotten horizon, so the sky never darkens fully. Plan around the darker half of the year.
Getting clear of the light
The sky over Norrbotten reads Bortle 2. Getting clear of the built-up area makes a visible difference on a marginal night.
- 13 km north-north-east — around Bodens kommun → Bortle 2
- 13 km north-north-east — around Bodens kommun → Bortle 2
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, October and February came out ahead in Norrbotten. 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 Norrbotten 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
Kiruna is close enough to reach and return in a night — 197 km north-north-west — and needs only Kp 3.
| Norrbotten | Kiruna | |
|---|---|---|
| Kp needed | 3 | 3 |
| Nights per year | 106.8 | 171.4 |
| Geomagnetic latitude | 63.9° | 65.6° |
Confirmed reports from this area
79 verified sightings were logged within 300 km of Norrbotten 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 Norrbotten
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 Norrbotten.
- Degervattenberget — hill6.3 km north-west
- Holmsvattnet — lake6.7 km north-north-west
- Södra Bredträsk — lake7.3 km west-north-west
- Odjursberget — hill7.4 km north-west
- Blåkölen — mountain17.0 km north-east
- Björnberget — mountain23.6 km north-north-east
Places from GeoNames (CC BY 4.0)
The last nights it was visible here
Nights in the last decade when the storm was strong enough for Norrbotten 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 Norrbotten
All 4 places in Norrbotten with a forecast page, and the Kp each one needs.
Know when it is worth going outside
Revon watches the Norrbotten forecast and pushes an alert when the odds for tonight clear your threshold — no checking, no guessing.
Common questions about the aurora borealis in Norrbotten
Can you see the aurora borealis from Norrbotten?
Yes. On the last 10.0 years of NOAA Kp records, Norrbotten had about 106.8 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 Norrbotten?
Kp 3. Norrbotten sits at geomagnetic latitude 63.9°, 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 Norrbotten?
March, October and February. 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 Norrbotten never gets fully dark, so nothing is visible however strong the storm.
Where can you escape the light pollution near Norrbotten?
The centre of Norrbotten reads Bortle 2. The nearest sky at Bortle 2 is about 13 km north-north-east around Bodens kommun. On a marginal night that drive matters more than the forecast does.
Where is the nearest place to Norrbotten with reliable aurora borealis?
Kiruna, Sweden — 197 km north-north-west. It needs only Kp 3 and averages 171.4 viable nights a year against 106.8 in Norrbotten.
Nearby towns
Forecasts for places within reach of Norrbotten.
- 🇸🇪 Boden - Sweden38 km
- 🇸🇪 Luleå - Sweden72 km
- 🇸🇪 Piteå - Sweden92 km
- 🇫🇮 Tornio - Finland129 km
- 🇫🇮 Kemi - Finland151 km
- 🇸🇪 Skellefteå - Sweden156 km
- 🇸🇪 Kiruna - Sweden197 km
- 🇫🇮 Rovaniemi - Finland197 km