Comparison
Glasgow vs Dundee for the northern lights
Answer
Side by side
| Figure | Glasgow | Dundee |
|---|---|---|
| Dipole latitude | 58.2° | 58.6° |
| Kp for the oval edge overhead | Kp 4 | Kp 4 |
| Civil night, December 15 | 15.3 h | 15.4 h |
| Dark-season days | 365 | 346 |
| Nights with no civil darkness | 0 | 0 |
| Dark-month cloud, NASA POWER | 76% | 79% |
| Solar midnight, December 15 | 00:12 | 00:07 |
Glasgow sits at 58.2 degrees geomagnetic. By SWPC's rule the average oval edge is overhead at Kp 4, and aurora is usually visible on the northern horizon at G1 (Kp 5) or less. Dundee sits at 58.6 degrees geomagnetic. By SWPC's rule the average oval edge is overhead at Kp 4, and aurora is usually visible on the northern horizon at G1 (Kp 5) or less.
Civil night month by month
On December 15 Glasgow has 15.3 hours of civil night and Dundee 15.4. Across the 15th of each month, Glasgow is darker in 5 months and Dundee in 3. The widest gap comes in June, when Glasgow has 0.3 more hours.
| Month | Glasgow | Dundee | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 14.7 h | 14.8 h | -0.1 h |
| February | 12.9 h | 12.9 h | +0.0 h |
| March | 10.8 h | 10.8 h | +0.0 h |
| April | 8.3 h | 8.2 h | +0.1 h |
| May | 5.8 h | 5.7 h | +0.1 h |
| June | 4.2 h | 3.9 h | +0.3 h |
| July | 5.0 h | 4.8 h | +0.2 h |
| August | 7.4 h | 7.3 h | +0.1 h |
| September | 9.9 h | 9.9 h | +0.0 h |
| October | 12.2 h | 12.2 h | +0.0 h |
| November | 14.2 h | 14.3 h | -0.1 h |
| December | 15.3 h | 15.4 h | -0.1 h |
Season and midnight sun
Glasgow has some civil darkness every night of 2026, and clears Glow's 4-hour dark-season bar every evening. Dundee has some civil darkness every night of 2026, and its dark season, 4 or more evening hours of civil night, lasts 346 days.
Distance, cloud and time zones
The two towns are 104 km apart by great circle. In the dark months Glasgow averages 76% cloud and Dundee 79%, from NASA POWER's 2001 to 2020 record. Glasgow's best month by civil night times clear sky is November. Dundee's best month by civil night times clear sky is November. Time zones: Europe/London and Europe/London.
For tonight, open the live pages for Glasgow and Dundee, which carry the live OVATION cell.
Questions
- Is Glasgow or Dundee better for the northern lights?
- Dundee sits closer to the oval, at 58.6 degrees geomagnetic against 58.2. 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, Glasgow or Dundee?
- Dundee, with 15.4 hours of civil night on December 15 against 15.3 in Glasgow.
- What Kp do Glasgow and Dundee need?
- By SWPC's rule of 66 degrees at Kp 0 and 2 degrees per step, Glasgow needs about Kp 4 and Dundee Kp 4 for the average oval edge to sit overhead.
- When is it too light for aurora in Glasgow and Dundee?
- Glasgow: never, every night has civil darkness. Dundee: never, every night has civil darkness.
- Which is clearer, Glasgow or Dundee?
- Glasgow, with 76% mean cloud in the months with 4 hours or more of civil night against 79% in Dundee (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.