Is Ålesund or Kristiansund better for the northern lights?

Kristiansund sits closer to the oval, at 63.2 degrees geomagnetic against 62.8. Darkness, cloud and your dates decide the rest; the tables on this page show both towns month by month.

Which has longer nights in December, Ålesund or Kristiansund?

Kristiansund, with 16.7 hours of civil night on December 15 against 16.6 in Ålesund.

What Kp do Ålesund and Kristiansund need?

By SWPC's rule of 66 degrees at Kp 0 and 2 degrees per step, Ålesund needs about Kp 2 and Kristiansund Kp 2 for the average oval edge to sit overhead.

When is it too light for aurora in Ålesund and Kristiansund?

Ålesund: May 25 to July 17. Kristiansund: May 22 to July 20.

Which is clearer, Ålesund or Kristiansund?

Kristiansund, with 81% mean cloud in the months with 4 hours or more of civil night against 83% in Ålesund (NASA POWER, 2001 to 2020).

Comparison

Ålesund vs Kristiansund for the northern lights

Answer

Kristiansund sits 0.3 degrees higher on the IGRF-14 dipole, 63.2 against 62.8. By SWPC's oval-edge rule Kristiansund needs about Kp 2 for the average edge to sit overhead and Ålesund Kp 2. On the map Kristiansund is also closer to the pole, by 0.6 degrees.

62.8° / 63.2°

dipole latitude

Side by side

Computed figures for both towns
Figure	Ålesund	Kristiansund
Dipole latitude	62.8°	63.2°
Kp for the oval edge overhead	Kp 2	Kp 2
Civil night, December 15	16.6 h	16.7 h
Dark-season days	281	277
Nights with no civil darkness	54	60
Dark-month cloud, NASA POWER	83%	81%
Solar midnight, December 15	00:30	00:24

Ålesund sits at 62.8 degrees geomagnetic, inside SWPC's 60 to 75 degree band, where aurora can be seen on more than half of all nights. No storm is needed: by SWPC's rule the average oval edge is overhead at Kp 2. Kristiansund sits at 63.2 degrees geomagnetic, inside SWPC's 60 to 75 degree band, where aurora can be seen on more than half of all nights. No storm is needed: by SWPC's rule the average oval edge is overhead at Kp 2.

Civil night month by month

On December 15 Ålesund has 16.6 hours of civil night and Kristiansund 16.7. Across the 15th of each month, Ålesund is darker in 4 months and Kristiansund in 4. The widest gap comes in May, when Ålesund has 0.5 more hours.

Hours of civil night on the 15th of each month, 2026
Month	Ålesund	Kristiansund	Difference
January	15.8 h	15.9 h	-0.1 h
February	13.3 h	13.4 h	-0.1 h
March	10.6 h	10.6 h	+0.0 h
April	7.2 h	7.1 h	+0.1 h
May	3.1 h	2.6 h	+0.5 h
June	0.0 h	0.0 h	+0.0 h
July	0.0 h	0.0 h	+0.0 h
August	5.8 h	5.6 h	+0.2 h
September	9.4 h	9.3 h	+0.1 h
October	12.4 h	12.4 h	+0.0 h
November	15.1 h	15.2 h	-0.1 h
December	16.6 h	16.7 h	-0.1 h

Difference: Ålesund minus Kristiansund. Each figure links to that town's month page.

Season and midnight sun

Ålesund has no civil darkness from May 25 to July 17, 54 nights in 2026, and its dark season, 4 or more evening hours of civil night, lasts 281 days. Kristiansund has no civil darkness from May 22 to July 20, 60 nights in 2026, and its dark season, 4 or more evening hours of civil night, lasts 277 days.

Distance, cloud and time zones

The two towns are 107 km apart by great circle. In the dark months Kristiansund averages 81% cloud and Ålesund 83%, from NASA POWER's 2001 to 2020 record. Ålesund's best month by civil night times clear sky is December. Kristiansund's best month by civil night times clear sky is November. Time zones: Europe/Oslo and Europe/Oslo.

For tonight, open the live pages for Ålesund and Kristiansund, which carry the live OVATION cell.

Questions

Is Ålesund or Kristiansund better for the northern lights?: Kristiansund sits closer to the oval, at 63.2 degrees geomagnetic against 62.8. Darkness, cloud and your dates decide the rest; the tables on this page show both towns month by month.
Which has longer nights in December, Ålesund or Kristiansund?: Kristiansund, with 16.7 hours of civil night on December 15 against 16.6 in Ålesund.
What Kp do Ålesund and Kristiansund need?: By SWPC's rule of 66 degrees at Kp 0 and 2 degrees per step, Ålesund needs about Kp 2 and Kristiansund Kp 2 for the average oval edge to sit overhead.
When is it too light for aurora in Ålesund and Kristiansund?: Ålesund: May 25 to July 17. Kristiansund: May 22 to July 20.
Which is clearer, Ålesund or Kristiansund?: Kristiansund, with 81% mean cloud in the months with 4 hours or more of civil night against 83% in Ålesund (NASA POWER, 2001 to 2020).

Sources and verification

IGRF-14 coefficients, NOAA NCEIhttps://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/IAGA/vmod/coeffs/igrf14coeffs.txt
SunCalchttps://github.com/mourner/suncalc
GeoNameshttps://www.geonames.org/export/
NASA POWER climatologyhttps://power.larc.nasa.gov/docs/services/api/temporal/climatology/
NOAA SWPC, Tips on viewing the aurorahttps://www.spaceweather.gov/content/tips-viewing-aurora

Quoted figures last checked against their sources on 2026-09-30; next review 2026-12-31. Computed figures come from SunCalc and the IGRF-14 dipole as described in the methodology. Every quote is listed in the sources ledger.