Aurora map

Where the aurora is likely right now: the NOAA OVATION model's short-term forecast, drawn over a map centered on the North Pole with North America at the bottom.

How to read the map

The colors show the chance of seeing aurora directly overhead in the next 30 to 90 minutes, based on the solar wind measured upstream of Earth. The band is called the auroral oval. It grows toward the equator when the Kp index rises.

You do not need to be under the band. From a dark place with an open northern view, an aurora up to about 500 to 600 miles to your north can show low on the horizon. That is why places south of the colored band still get displays.

Southern Hemisphere

The same model for the aurora australis, centered on the South Pole with Australia and New Zealand at the bottom.