SKY · AURORA · ALASKA, USA
Aurora Forecast — Fairbanks
Fairbanks is a auroral zone location — it sits under the auroral oval — the aurora appears overhead on most clear, active nights, not just during big storms.
Tonight looks promising for Fairbanks: the current Kp of 1.0 meets the Kp 1+ this location usually needs. Get away from town lights and look toward the pole.
Source: NOAA SWPC (planetary Kp index) · viewing threshold from Fairbanks's geomagnetic latitude (IGRF). Figures update through the night.
Seeing the northern lights from Fairbanks
Whether the aurora is visible from Fairbankscomes down to two things: how disturbed Earth's magnetic field is (the Kp index, 0–9) and how far north Fairbanks sits in geomagneticterms — about 65° here. The more active the field, the further from the poles the glowing oval reaches. For Fairbanks, the rule of thumb is a Kp of 1 or higher.
On a promising night, get away from street lighting, give your eyes 20 minutes to adapt, and look toward the northern horizon. A faint grey-green arch to the naked eye often shows up far more vividly through a phone or camera on a long exposure.
What to check before you go
Clear skies matter as much as the Kp — thick cloud hides everything. Pair this forecast with the live weather layer for Fairbanks, and remember the Moon: a bright Moon washes out faint aurora.
Fairbanks right now
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