Northern Lights Tonight in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada

Live visibility odds for Yellowknife, combining the current geomagnetic Kp index with real local cloud cover, not just one or the other.

What Kp do you need in Yellowknife?

Those frequencies are how often the geomagnetic threshold itself is reached, before weather. Cloud cover, moonlight and local light pollution all cut into it, which is why the live score at the top of this page multiplies the geomagnetic odds by tonight's actual sky over Yellowknife.

Which way to look from Yellowknife

At this magnetic latitude the aurora can appear overhead or even to the south of you during an active night, so a view in every direction is worth having.

About aurora viewing in Yellowknife

Yellowknife is routinely ranked among the best aurora-viewing destinations on Earth, sitting almost directly under the auroral oval with a well-developed local tourism industry built entirely around it.

Where locals actually go

Aurora Village and several other dedicated viewing operations sit just outside the city specifically to combine a dark sky with heated viewing shelters; Great Slave Lake's shoreline also offers open self-drive viewing.

Best time of year

The aurora is visible here roughly 240 nights a year on average, making it one of the most statistically reliable places in the world to see it during the winter season.

Will I see the aurora in Yellowknife tonight?

Right now, Yellowknife has a 7% chance based on tonight's real conditions: Kp 1.7 and 8% clear skies. Naked-eye possible. This updates live, so check back closer to dark for the most accurate read, especially if the sky is currently cloudy where you are.

A good Kp forecast isn't the whole story. See what else actually determines whether you'll see it →