Live Northern Lights Webcams

1. Sweden — Porjus (Recommended)
2. Winnipeg — Winnipeg Webcams Live in Canada
3. Talkeetna — TAT’s Webcam Mt. McKinley is 60 miles from Talkeetna
4. Minnesota — Mille Lacs Resort Live Webcam
5. Turnagain Arm — Alaska About 4 miles south of Anchorage
6. Climate Research Center — Alaska Web Cam Fairbanks
7. Canada — Yellowknife Canadian Space Agency
8. Hawaii — Mauna Kea Web Cams

Space Weather Current Conditions

1. KP Index: Planetary Kp-index (3 hour data)
2. Space Weather Enthusiasts Dashboard: Space Weather Overview
3. Space Weather Current Conditions: SpaceWeather.com

Best time to view Northern Lights: During spring and fall Equinoxes.

Directions for taking pictures of the aurora:
Use a wide-angle lens and a sturdy, well balanced tripod. Slower films, ASA 100 to 200, capture bright colors but will require longer exposures; the lights will appear smeared. ASA 1000 speed film records clearer shapes, but the colors may not be as vivid and the photos are often grainy. Shoot at F-2.8 and hold the shutter open for 20 to 30 seconds. The time of the exposure depends on the brightness of the aurora [Source: fairbanks-alaska.com].

The aurora is most active late at night or early in the morning, when the sky is clear. Alaska is probably the best place to watch the northern lights. But, it was seen as far south as Minnesota last night. It never hurts to go outside late at night and look to the northern skies.

The counterpart of the Northern Lights, is the aurora australis or the Southern Polar Lights, has similar properties, but is only visible from high southern latitudes in Antarctica, South America, or Australasia.

Auroras are more frequent and brighter during the intense phase of the solar cycle when coronal mass ejections increase the intensity of the solar wind.

Putting It All Together — Can I, or can’t I, see the Aurora?
Once you know your magnetic latitude, and how high the Kp index needs to be for you to see the aurora at your magnetic latitude, it comes down to choosing a viewing time of high magnetic activity by frequently checking the Kp index and SWPC forecast. It could also be worthwhile to check the POES Auroral Activity page, which might or might not be more up-to-date than the Kp, depending on the time of the most recent polar pass of the POES satellite. (The table below will help you relate the POES Auroral Activity Level to the Kp index.) Of course, for you to see the aurora it will also have to be a clear night without interference from city lights or moonlight.

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