Is Ålesund or Molde better for the northern lights?

Molde sits closer to the oval, at 62.9 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 Molde?

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

What Kp do Ålesund and Molde need?

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

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

Ålesund: May 25 to July 17. Molde: May 24 to July 18.

Which is clearer, Ålesund or Molde?

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

Comparison

Ålesund vs Molde for the northern lights

Answer

Molde sits 0.1 degrees higher on the IGRF-14 dipole, 62.9 against 62.8. By SWPC's oval-edge rule Molde needs about Kp 2 for the average edge to sit overhead and Ålesund Kp 2. On the map Molde is also closer to the pole, by 0.3 degrees.

62.8° / 62.9°

dipole latitude

Side by side

Computed figures for both towns
Figure	Ålesund	Molde
Dipole latitude	62.8°	62.9°
Kp for the oval edge overhead	Kp 2	Kp 2
Civil night, December 15	16.6 h	16.6 h
Dark-season days	281	279
Nights with no civil darkness	54	56
Dark-month cloud, NASA POWER	83%	83%
Solar midnight, December 15	00:30	00:26

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. Molde sits at 62.9 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 Molde 16.6. Across the 15th of each month, Ålesund is darker in 2 months and Molde in 0. The widest gap comes in May, when Ålesund has 0.2 more hours.

Hours of civil night on the 15th of each month, 2026
Month	Ålesund	Molde	Difference
January	15.8 h	15.8 h	+0.0 h
February	13.3 h	13.3 h	+0.0 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	2.9 h	+0.2 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	5.8 h	+0.0 h
September	9.4 h	9.4 h	+0.0 h
October	12.4 h	12.4 h	+0.0 h
November	15.1 h	15.1 h	+0.0 h
December	16.6 h	16.6 h	+0.0 h

Difference: Ålesund minus Molde. 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. Molde has no civil darkness from May 24 to July 18, 56 nights in 2026, and its dark season, 4 or more evening hours of civil night, lasts 279 days.

Distance, cloud and time zones

The two towns are 59 km apart by great circle. In the dark months both average about 83% cloud in NASA POWER's 2001 to 2020 record. Ålesund's best month by civil night times clear sky is December. Molde's best month by civil night times clear sky is December. Time zones: Europe/Oslo and Europe/Oslo.

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

Questions

Is Ålesund or Molde better for the northern lights?: Molde sits closer to the oval, at 62.9 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 Molde?: Ålesund, with 16.6 hours of civil night on December 15 against 16.6 in Molde.
What Kp do Ålesund and Molde need?: By SWPC's rule of 66 degrees at Kp 0 and 2 degrees per step, Ålesund needs about Kp 2 and Molde Kp 2 for the average oval edge to sit overhead.
When is it too light for aurora in Ålesund and Molde?: Ålesund: May 25 to July 17. Molde: May 24 to July 18.
Which is clearer, Ålesund or Molde?: Ålesund, with 83% mean cloud in the months with 4 hours or more of civil night against 83% in Molde (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.