7 guides
Where and when
When in the year and the night your chances are best, and where in Norway to stand – from Svalbard to the south.
Best time of year for the northern lights in Norway, month by month
The aurora is there all year, but in Northern Norway you can only see it from late August to mid-April. Here is what each month gives and takes.
Best time of night for the aurora: magnetic midnight and the moon
The aurora can appear as soon as it is dark, but the strongest outbursts cluster around magnetic midnight, which in Northern Norway is roughly 11 pm in winter time.
Aurora in Tromsø: spots in town, escaping the lights and etiquette
Tromsø sits under the auroral oval on most clear nights. Here are the spots in town, when driving out is worth it, and how to chase the lights without upsetting the neighbours.
Northern lights in Lofoten and Vesterålen: beaches, weather, roads
Lofoten and Vesterålen pair the aurora with peaks, beaches and sea. Here is how the islands are placed, what the coastal weather means, and what to know about winter roads.
Northern lights in Alta and Finnmark: inland climate, history, cold
Finnmark offers aurora over plateau, fjord and the Barents Sea, a drier and colder inland climate than the coast, and the world's oldest aurora research history in Alta.
Aurora on Svalbard: daytime aurora, polar night and polar bears
Svalbard offers something mainland Norway cannot: aurora in the middle of the day during the polar night. When it is dark enough, why a high Kp is not always better, and the rules outside Longyearbyen.
Aurora in southern Norway: what it takes in Oslo, Bergen, Trondheim
Aurora in southern Norway is uncommon but far from impossible in active years. Roughly what Kp you need, why you must look north, and why your camera often sees more than you.