Northern lights forecast
Bettles and the Arctic
Reading the northern lights and cloud forecasts.
Northern lights forecast
Reading the northern lights and cloud forecasts.
Northern lights forecast
How active the northern lights are expected to be, how cloudy the sky will be, and what the moon is doing, night by night to Sat, Oct 31. Odds, never a promise.
North of the Arctic Circle the northern lights are often overhead, and sometimes to the south.
NOAA's 3-hour activity forecast with the National Weather Service cloud forecast. This is the most reliable part of the page.
Very low chance
ForecastFair chance
ForecastVery good chance
ForecastFrom here NOAA gives one activity figure a day. We pair it with the cloud forecast and call the result an early estimate.
Fair chance
Early estimateLow chance
Early estimateNobody can forecast cloud this far ahead. These nights show NOAA's activity outlook, the moon and the dark hours. Use them to pick dates, then check back.
Very good chance if the sky is clear
Activity outlook onlyVery good chance if the sky is clear
Activity outlook onlyOn average 5 days are clear, 6 days partly cloudy and 21 days cloudy.
Long-term averages from NOAA's climate records (5 years of observations at Bettles). They describe daytime skies, so treat them as a guide to the month, not a forecast for any one night.
Sources: NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center (3-day forecast and 27-day outlook), National Weather Service (cloud cover) and NOAA climate records. Forecasts read at 5:02 pm. NOAA issued the 27-day outlook on Sun, Oct 4. For maps and the science, see the UAF Geophysical Institute aurora forecast.
Give us your dates and we will draft a trip with northern lights nights, things to do by day and events in town. Nothing to pay yet.
Very low chance
Very low chance
Early estimateGood chance if the sky is clear
Activity outlook onlyGood chance if the sky is clear
Activity outlook onlyGood chance if the sky is clear
Activity outlook onlyGood chance if the sky is clear
Activity outlook onlyGood chance if the sky is clear
Activity outlook onlyGood chance if the sky is clear
Activity outlook onlyVery good chance if the sky is clear
Activity outlook onlyVery good chance if the sky is clear
Activity outlook onlyVery good chance if the sky is clear
Activity outlook onlyVery good chance if the sky is clear
Activity outlook onlyGood chance if the sky is clear
Activity outlook onlyGood chance if the sky is clear
Activity outlook onlyGood chance if the sky is clear
Activity outlook onlyGood chance if the sky is clear
Activity outlook onlyGood chance if the sky is clear
Activity outlook onlyGood chance if the sky is clear
Activity outlook onlyVery good chance if the sky is clear
Activity outlook onlyNo outlook yet