Aurora Borealis in Vuosaari
Finland · 60.21°, 25.14° · geomagnetic 57.7° · needs Kp 7
Tonight in Vuosaari
38%
Peak chance of a visible display tonight, from the same model the Revon app runs. Vuosaari needs Kp 7 to see anything at all, and tonight the forecast peaks at Kp 5.7. Short of the threshold, which is what most nights look like here.
Updated 2026-08-02 20:20 UTC
The next 30 nights in Vuosaari
Every night to come, scored the same way as tonight. The best of the open week is Sunday 2 Aug at 38%. Not one of the seven reaches the Kp 7 that Vuosaari needs, which is normal rather than unlucky — it averages 2.3 viable nights a year. 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 Vuosaari
Revon aurora model over the NOAA Kp forecast and 27-day outlook
How often the aurora borealis reaches Vuosaari
2.3 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
Wait for an alert; do not book a week
At Kp 7, Vuosaari needs a severe geomagnetic storm before anything shows above the northern horizon. Storms that size arrive a handful of times per solar cycle and announce themselves a day or two ahead. Watching for one beats picking dates and hoping.
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 | 3.0 | 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 Vuosaari horizon, so the sky never darkens fully. Plan around the darker half of the year.
Getting clear of the light
The sky over Vuosaari reads Bortle 7. Getting clear of the built-up area makes a visible difference on a marginal night.
- 31 km south-east — around Porvoo → Bortle 5
- 41 km south-east — around Porvoo → 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, November and March came out ahead in Vuosaari. 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 Vuosaari 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 Rovaniemi, 700 km north in Finland.
| Vuosaari | Rovaniemi | |
|---|---|---|
| Kp needed | 7 | 3 |
| Nights per year | 2.3 | 171.4 |
| Geomagnetic latitude | 57.7° | 63.6° |
Confirmed reports from this area
40 verified sightings were logged within 300 km of Vuosaari 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 Vuosaari
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 Vuosaari.
- Kråkholmen — island3.1 km north-east
- Spikberget — hill3.2 km north-north-west
- Kalkkisaari — island3.3 km east-north-east
- Kantarnäsberget — hill3.3 km north-east
- Kalkkisaarenselkä — bay3.7 km east
- Stora Dammen — lake6.0 km north-north-east
Places from GeoNames (CC BY 4.0)
What to do with the daylight
Aurora watching is a night job, and in winter that leaves a short, bright day to fill. Vuosaari keeps its fortified past above ground, at Sibbesborg, Suomenlinna and Suomenlinnan Merilinnoitus, and for a day when the cloud sits low, Viikin Latokartano, Nissbackan Kartano and Tekniikanmuseo are indoors and near by.
Keep the daylight loose: the sky decides the evening, and the forecast can turn within a few hours.
Places from GeoNames (CC BY 4.0)
Where to stay
Anywhere on the outskirts of Vuosaari will do; what matters is being able to step outside and check the sky without a drive first.
- Park Kapyla 10.5 km from the centre
- Sokos Vantaa Airport 10.5 km from the centre
- Sokos 10.6 km from the centre
- Original Sokos Vantaa 10.6 km from the centre
- Rantasipi Airport Congress Center 11.1 km from the centre
- Best Western Airport Hotel Pilotti 12.8 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 Vuosaari and the sky was dark enough to show it.
| Date | Peak |
|---|---|
| 2026-03-20 | Kp 7.0 |
| 2026-01-20 | Kp 7.67 |
| 2026-01-19 | Kp 8.67 |
| 2025-11-12 | Kp 7.33 |
| 2025-11-11 | Kp 8.67 |
NOAA planetary Kp
Know when it is worth going outside
Revon watches the Vuosaari forecast and pushes an alert when the odds for tonight clear your threshold — no checking, no guessing.
Common questions about the aurora borealis in Vuosaari
Can you see the aurora borealis from Vuosaari?
Yes. On the last 10.0 years of NOAA Kp records, Vuosaari had about 2.3 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 Vuosaari?
Kp 7. Vuosaari sits at geomagnetic latitude 57.7°, and the auroral oval only reaches that far from the pole once activity hits Kp 7. Storms that size occur about 3.2 nights a year.
When is the best time of year to see the aurora borealis in Vuosaari?
September, November and March. 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 Vuosaari never gets fully dark, so nothing is visible however strong the storm.
Where can you escape the light pollution near Vuosaari?
The centre of Vuosaari reads Bortle 7. The nearest sky at Bortle 4 is about 41 km south-east around Porvoo. On a marginal night that drive matters more than the forecast does.
Where is the nearest place to Vuosaari with reliable aurora borealis?
Rovaniemi, Finland — 700 km north. It needs only Kp 3 and averages 171.4 viable nights a year against 2.3 in Vuosaari.
Nearby towns
Forecasts for places within reach of Vuosaari.