Aurora Borealis in Winchester
United Kingdom · 51.07°, -1.32° · geomagnetic 53.1° · needs Kp 7
Tonight's aurora forecast for Winchester
1%
Peak chance of a visible display tonight, from the same model the Revon app runs. Winchester needs Kp 7 to see anything at all, and tonight the forecast peaks at Kp 4.9. 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
Local aurora guide for Winchester
The aurora borealis is typically visible in Winchester when geomagnetic activity reaches Kp 7 or higher. This level of activity is relatively infrequent.
Winchester is located at approximately 53.1° geomagnetic latitude. This latitude is generally considered favorable for aurora viewing, but requires significant geomagnetic storms.
On average, there are about 2.7 nights per year in this region where conditions are suitable for aurora viewing, based on historical data spanning from 2016 to 2026.
The months of September, August, and November are historically the best for aurora viewing in Winchester. These months offer a good balance of darkness and potential aurora activity.
During June and July, Winchester experiences periods without full darkness due to the high latitude. This twilight can obscure aurora visibility even when activity is present.
Winchester has a Bortle scale rating of 5, indicating a suburban sky. While not pristine dark sky, aurora can still be visible.
Areas with darker skies, rated Bortle 4, can be found approximately 67 km south-south-east of Winchester. Closer to the city, about 9 km south-south-east, there are also Bortle 5 areas.
The horizon in Winchester is influenced by nearby hills such as Woolbury, 11.1 km west-north-west, and Cocksford Down, 15.7 km north-north-east. Other features like Swan Island (a lake island) and a park named Festival Place also shape the local skyline.
Nearby hills like Woolbury, located 11.1 km west-north-west of Winchester, offer elevated viewpoints. Cocksford Down, a hill 15.7 km north-north-east, is another such feature.
The area includes islands such as Swan Island, 13.4 km west-north-west, and bodies of water like the lake near Mill, 19.2 km north-west.
Parks like Festival Place, situated 27.6 km north-east of Winchester, are also part of the local geography.
There have been 44 verified aurora sightings reported within a 300 km radius of Winchester between early 2015 and late 2016.
Based on historical Kp data, qualifying nights for aurora viewing have occurred on dates such as March 20, 2026 (Kp 7.0), January 20, 2026 (Kp 7.67), and January 19, 2026 (Kp 8.67).
Additional qualifying nights include November 12, 2025 (Kp 7.33) and November 11, 2025 (Kp 8.67), indicating periods of significant geomagnetic activity within the 2016-2026 record span.
Sources: Revon location dataset · Revon analysis of NOAA planetary Kp · Solar declination and hour-angle calculation · Falchi 2016 World Atlas of artificial night sky brightness · GeoNames (CC BY 4.0) · Aurorasaurus verified positive reports
Know when it is worth going outside
Revon watches the Winchester forecast and pushes an alert when the odds for tonight clear your threshold — no checking, no guessing.
Nearby towns
Forecasts for places within reach of Winchester.