Tonight across Iceland
–viewing score
Our read of tonight's forecasts
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- Aurora activity
- –/9
- Met Office
- Dark sky
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- Moon
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- Kp forecast
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- Best in Iceland
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Let's hunt for the northern lights
The live aurora forecast for Iceland: clear skies, darkness and solar wind, hour by hour, for every corner of the country.
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Where are you hunting from?
We’ll find the nearest clear, dark spot within a 90-minute drive and tell you when to leave.
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Other options
Forecast · Iceland time
Where to go tonight
One place per area, ranked by the best viewing score you can still reach.
Where to go
The map shows the chosen hour. Use the timeline to watch the night unfold.
Roads © OpenStreetMap contributors
Pins are Met Office forecast stations. The coloured field between them is our estimate, so trust the pins first. Map data: Natural Earth; roads on the full-screen map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Hour by hour
Every station through the dark hours. Tap a row to select the station, or a column to jump to that hour.
Before you head out
Mountain passes
Conditions on the passes and sands of the main camper routes.
Road conditions: Icelandic Road and Coastal Administration. Check umferdin.is before you drive.
Camera settings
For the chosen place and hour.
What to bring
For the chosen place and night.
Plan ahead
The next ten nights
Met Office aurora activity, hours of darkness and the moon. Starred nights combine good activity with a dim moon.
Four-week outlook
NOAA's highest expected Kp per day. The sun turns every 27 days, so active regions often come back around.
Space weather
Right now
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Met Office weather warnings
Kp index
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Aurora overhead
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Solar wind reaches Earth in about an hour
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Kp index, past day and next three
NOAA's 3-hour Kp. Over Iceland, Kp 2 to 3 is often enough on a clear, dark night. Shaded columns are the dark hours.
Solar wind, last 24 hours
Measured a million and a half kilometres upstream. A southward field (Bz below zero) and a fast wind wake the aurora up about an hour later.
Dark-sky spots around Iceland
Favourite places to watch the aurora, with the chosen night's viewing score from the nearest station. Tap a spot to see it on the map.
Capital area
–Reykjanes
–Golden Circle
–West
–Snæfellsnes
–Westfjords
–North-west
–North
–North-east
–East
–South-east
–South coast
–Spend the night at a campsite that is open in winter, and drive out to your viewing spot in the evening. Never park on the road itself.
Aurora activity, darkness, moon, station forecasts, observations and warnings: Icelandic Met Office. Kp, solar wind, the aurora model and alerts: NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center. Roads: Icelandic Road and Coastal Administration. Map: Natural Earth. The viewing score is our own rating that combines these forecasts; it is not a probability, and the aurora is never guaranteed.
The live forecast is not available right now. See the Icelandic Met Office aurora forecast.
The hunter's guide
How to find the northern lights in Iceland
Read the forecast
The Met Office rates aurora activity from 0 to 9. In Iceland even a 2 or 3 can light up the sky, because the aurora oval sits right above the country. Clouds matter more than the number: a clear sky at activity 3 beats a cloudy sky at 6.
Pick the right time
The season runs from late August to mid-April, when the nights are dark. The sky is often most active between 22:00 and 02:00. Around the equinoxes, in September and March, activity tends to be higher, and the nights are still long.
Get away from the lights
Drive 20 minutes out of any town and the sky gets much darker. Þingvellir, the Snæfellsnes peninsula, the south coast beaches and Mývatn are favourites. Spend the night at a campsite that is open in winter, as Icelandic law asks campers to do.
Take the photo
Use a tripod, a wide lens and manual focus at infinity. Start at ISO 1600 to 3200 with 5 to 15 second exposures. On a phone, night mode with the phone resting on something steady works surprisingly well.
Stay safe
Never stop on the road itself: find a parking area or a side road. Check road conditions on umferdin.is and alerts on safetravel.is before you set off. See driving in Iceland for more.
Watch the solar wind
The aurora reacts to the solar wind within the hour. A fast wind and a magnetic field pointing south (a negative Bz, ideally −5 or lower) are the signs that the sky is about to wake up, even when the forecast number is low.
Aurora questions
When is the best time to see the northern lights in Iceland?
From late August to mid-April, whenever the sky is dark and clear. The longest nights are from November to February, and September and March often bring strong activity around the equinoxes.
Can I watch the northern lights from inside the camper?
Yes. The Highlanders have a sky roof that opens, so you can lie back on the bed and watch the sky, and our other campers have panoramic windows. For photos and the full view, step outside, away from any lights.
Where can I park the camper for the night?
Icelandic law asks campervans to stay overnight at campsites. Drive out to a dark viewing spot in the evening, then spend the night at a campsite that is open in winter. Your camper comes with a winter campsite map.
Will the camper stay warm on a winter night?
Yes. Our campers have Webasto heating, an airflow-heated bed and goose-down duvets. An extra battery, charged by the engine and a solar panel, keeps the heating and lights running without a plug.
What do the aurora forecast numbers mean?
The Icelandic Met Office rates aurora activity from 0 (low) to 9 (very high), and NOAA’s Kp index measures the same activity worldwide. In Iceland an activity of 2 or 3 is often enough on a clear, dark night, so cloud cover matters more than the number.
What do the solar wind and Bz mean?
The aurora is powered by the solar wind, the stream of particles from the sun that NOAA measures about an hour before it reaches Earth. A faster wind and a magnetic field pointing south (a negative Bz) let more energy in, so the aurora often brightens soon after the Bz turns negative.
Are the northern lights guaranteed?
No. The aurora is a natural event and nobody can promise it. More dark hours, a dim moon and the freedom to drive to clear skies give you the best chance.
Clear skies and happy hunting
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