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Northern lights forecast for the UK
Scotland sees the northern lights several times most winters, and in a strong storm they reach all of the UK, as they did in May and October 2024. The further north you are, the smaller the storm you need.
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- Kp right now
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- highest Kp forecast in the next 24 hours
Loading the latest Kp from NOAA…
| City | Kp needed | Tonight |
|---|---|---|
| Lerwick | Kp 2 | – |
| Kirkwall | Kp 3 | – |
| Inverness | Kp 3 | – |
| Aberdeen | Kp 3 | – |
| Glasgow | Kp 4 | – |
| Edinburgh | Kp 4 | – |
| Belfast | Kp 4 | – |
| Newcastle | Kp 4 | – |
| York | Kp 5 | – |
| Manchester | Kp 5 | – |
| Birmingham | Kp 5 | – |
| Norwich | Kp 6 | – |
| Cardiff | Kp 6 | – |
| Bristol | Kp 6 | – |
| London | Kp 6 | – |
| Plymouth | Kp 6 | – |
The Kp needed is where the aurora usually shows low on the northern horizon, worked out from each city’s geomagnetic latitude. Kp from NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center.
Where to watch
Get away from towns with a clear view north: the Scottish Highlands and islands, Northumberland, the Lake District, Snowdonia, the North York Moors and Exmoor have some of the darkest skies.
How to read the forecast
The Kp index runs from 0 to 9 and measures how disturbed Earth’s magnetic field is. The higher it is, the further from the poles the aurora reaches. Kp 5 and above is a geomagnetic storm. The forecast is a guide, not a promise: the real show depends on the solar wind on the night.
More in the guide: the Kp index and the northern lights.