Northern Lights Forecast: These 9 States Could See Aurora Tonight
A handful of northern states could see the northern lights tonight, according to the latest forecast by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, before auroral activity declines later in the week.
NOAA projects Monday night’s northern lights display will have a Kp index of 4, a level of strength measured on a scale of 0 to 9, indicating “more auroral activity” and lights that can be “quite pleasing to look at.”
No geomagnetic storms are expected tonight or in the coming days, according to the NOAA forecast (storms typically strengthen the northern lights display).
NOAA forecasts Tuesday night’s aurora will have a weaker Kp index of 3, with fewer states expected to have the chance to see the lights.
Alaskans, as usual, will have the best shot at seeing the northern lights Monday night. Much of the state’s interior has a high likelihood of seeing the aurora, according to NOAA's projection. Other states with a smaller chance of seeing the lights include North Dakota and the northern edges of Washington, Idaho, Montana, South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan.
NOAA recommends hopeful aurora viewers travel as close to the magnetic north pole as possible and find a high vantage point that lacks light pollution. The lights are easier to see when it is dark outside, and NOAA recommends looking within an hour or two of midnight, between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. local time, when the lights are typically most active.
Travel photographers told National Geographic the best way to take pictures of the lights is by using a tripod to stabilize the image, using a wide-angle lens and a lower shutter speed. Photographers using their iPhone should enable the camera’s night mode, turn off flash and shoot in RAW format.
The northern lights appeared frequently in American skies between 2024 and 2025 as the sun passed through the “maximum” phase of its solar cycle, during which solar events like geomagnetic storms are more common. The level of solar activity surpassed scientists’ expectations, and NASA said the northern lights hit a 500-year peak in 2024. Auroral activity is expected to decline throughout the latter half of the decade as the sun exits its maximum period.