The Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis) are natural light displays caused by solar wind particles colliding with Earth's upper atmosphere at the poles. They appear as dancing green, pink, and purple curtains of light.
September to March offers the best aurora viewing in Iceland. The darkest nights are in November–January. You need it to be dark (after 22:00) and clear skies.
Iceland sits at high latitude so KP 2-3 is enough for faint aurora. KP 4+ gives clear visible aurora. KP 5+ is a geomagnetic storm with dramatic displays.
Yes, but light pollution reduces visibility. Drive 20-30 minutes outside the city for much better views. The Reykjanes peninsula and Þingvellir are popular nearby spots.
Use a wide-angle lens, ISO 800-3200, aperture f/2.8 or wider, and a 5-15 second exposure. Use a tripod and remote shutter release. Turn off flash.
Dress in thermal layers. Temperatures can drop to -10°C or below. Waterproof outer layer, thermal base layer, gloves, hat and warm boots are essential.
Yes — tour guides know the best dark spots and have experience reading forecasts. They also provide warm clothing and transportation. Most tours have a free repeat if no aurora is seen.
Yes, the website and app are free. The app offers premium features like push notifications when aurora becomes visible and extended forecasts.
The forecast uses real-time data from NOAA's space weather center, updated every 2 minutes. Short-term (3-hour) forecasts are quite accurate. Beyond 24 hours accuracy decreases.
Different atmospheric gases glow different colors. Oxygen at high altitude glows red, oxygen at lower altitude glows green (most common). Nitrogen glows blue and purple.
No — Iceland has midnight sun from May to August. The sky never gets dark enough. Aurora season runs September to April.
KP measures global geomagnetic activity. The AuroraVision visibility score combines KP with local cloud cover, solar wind data and magnetic field orientation for a more accurate local prediction.
Check tonight's live conditions or explore how the aurora score is calculated.