Aurora Borealis in Northwest Territories

Canada · 62.45°, -114.37° · geomagnetic 68.6° · needs Kp 3

Tonight in Northwest Territories

30%

Peak chance of a visible display tonight, from the same model the Revon app runs. Northwest Territories needs Kp 3 before anything clears the northern horizon, and tonight the forecast peaks at Kp 4.7 — comfortably over the line.

Tonight Sun 02 Aug
30%
18
20
22
00
02
04
06
Tomorrow Mon 3 Aug
19%
Hour-by-hour for this night is in the app
Tuesday Tue 4 Aug
4%
Hour-by-hour for this night is in the app

Unlock every hour in the app

Updated 2026-08-02 20:20 UTC

The next 30 nights in Northwest Territories

Every night to come, scored the same way as tonight. The best of the open week is Sunday 2 Aug at 30%. 4 of the seven reach the Kp 3 that Northwest Territories needs, topping out at Kp 4.7. The 23 nights past the seven-day window move with the 27-day solar rotation and are updated daily in the app.

Moderate aurora activity tonight around 3 AM. Similar conditions expected on August 19th.

Sun 2
30%
Kp 4.7
Mon 3
19%
Kp 3.3
Tue 4
4%
Kp 1.3
Wed 5
25%
Kp 3.0
Thu 6
26%
Kp 3.0
Fri 7
19%
Kp 2.0
Sat 8
19%
Kp 2.0

Nights 8–30 unlock in the Revon app

See all 30 nights for Northwest Territories

Revon aurora model over the NOAA Kp forecast and 27-day outlook

How often the aurora borealis reaches Northwest Territories

117.7 nights a year, averaged across 10.0 years of records

Storm levelNights / year
Kp 483.4
Kp 528.7
Kp 69.3
Kp 73.2
Kp 81.2

NOAA planetary Kp, 2016-04-02 to 2026-03-30

You are inside the auroral oval

Northwest Territories 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

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
12.210.27.30.00.00.00.00.05.79.311.712.8

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 Northwest Territories horizon, so the sky never darkens fully. Plan around the darker half of the year.

Getting clear of the light

Northwest Territories is small enough that its own lights are a minor problem — the centre reads Bortle 2. Walking to the edge of town is often escape enough.

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 Northwest Territories. 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 Northwest Territories viewing season.

Where it is close to a certainty

Yellowknife is close enough to reach and return in a night — 0 km north — and needs only Kp 3.

Northwest TerritoriesYellowknife
Kp needed33
Nights per year117.7 171.4
Geomagnetic latitude68.6° 68.6°

See the Yellowknife forecast

Confirmed reports from this area

162 verified sightings were logged within 300 km of Northwest Territories 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 Northwest Territories

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 Northwest Territories.

Places from GeoNames (CC BY 4.0)

Where to stay

Anywhere on the outskirts of Northwest Territories will do; what matters is being able to step outside and check the sky without a drive first.

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 Northwest Territories and the sky was dark enough to show it.

DatePeak
2026-03-30Kp 3.0
2026-03-29Kp 3.33
2026-03-28Kp 3.67
2026-03-27Kp 3.33
2026-03-26Kp 3.0

NOAA planetary Kp

Aurora forecasts across Northwest Territories

All 1 places in Northwest Territories with a forecast page, and the Kp each one needs.

Know when it is worth going outside

Revon watches the Northwest Territories forecast and pushes an alert when the odds for tonight clear your threshold — no checking, no guessing.

Get aurora alerts on iPhone

Common questions about the aurora borealis in Northwest Territories

Can you see the aurora borealis from Northwest Territories?

Yes. On the last 10.0 years of NOAA Kp records, Northwest Territories had about 117.7 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 Northwest Territories?

Kp 3. Northwest Territories sits at geomagnetic latitude 68.6°, 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 Northwest Territories?

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 Northwest Territories never gets fully dark, so nothing is visible however strong the storm.

Where can you escape the light pollution near Northwest Territories?

The centre of Northwest Territories reads Bortle 2. The nearest sky at Bortle 2 is about 8 km north-east around North Slave Region. On a marginal night that drive matters more than the forecast does.

Where is the nearest place to Northwest Territories with reliable aurora borealis?

Yellowknife, Canada — 0 km north. It needs only Kp 3 and averages 171.4 viable nights a year against 117.7 in Northwest Territories.

Nearby towns

Forecasts for places within reach of Northwest Territories.