Is Kovdor or Nikel better for the northern lights?

Nikel sits closer to the oval, at 65.7 degrees geomagnetic against 64.0. 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, Kovdor or Nikel?

Nikel, with 19.1 hours of civil night on December 15 against 18.2 in Kovdor.

What Kp do Kovdor and Nikel need?

By SWPC's rule of 66 degrees at Kp 0 and 2 degrees per step, Kovdor needs about Kp 2 and Nikel Kp 1 for the average oval edge to sit overhead.

When is it too light for aurora in Kovdor and Nikel?

Kovdor: May 4 to August 7. Nikel: April 28 to August 14.

Which is clearer, Kovdor or Nikel?

Kovdor, with 80% mean cloud in the months with 4 hours or more of civil night against 83% in Nikel (NASA POWER, 2001 to 2020).

Comparison

Kovdor vs Nikel for the northern lights

Answer

Nikel sits 1.8 degrees higher on the IGRF-14 dipole, 65.7 against 64.0. By SWPC's oval-edge rule Nikel needs about Kp 1 for the average edge to sit overhead and Kovdor Kp 2. On the map Nikel is also closer to the pole, by 1.8 degrees.

64.0° / 65.7°

dipole latitude

Side by side

Computed figures for both towns
Figure	Kovdor	Nikel
Dipole latitude	64.0°	65.7°
Kp for the oval edge overhead	Kp 2	Kp 1
Civil night, December 15	18.2 h	19.1 h
Dark-season days	249	240
Nights with no civil darkness	96	109
Dark-month cloud, NASA POWER	80%	83%
Solar midnight, December 15	00:53	00:54

Kovdor sits at 64.0 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. Nikel sits at 65.7 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 1.

Civil night month by month

On December 15 Kovdor has 18.2 hours of civil night and Nikel 19.1. Across the 15th of each month, Kovdor is darker in 4 months and Nikel in 5. The widest gap comes in August, when Kovdor has 2.1 more hours.

Hours of civil night on the 15th of each month, 2026
Month	Kovdor	Nikel	Difference
January	17.0 h	17.7 h	-0.7 h
February	13.8 h	14.0 h	-0.2 h
March	10.3 h	10.2 h	+0.1 h
April	5.8 h	5.0 h	+0.8 h
May	0.0 h	0.0 h	+0.0 h
June	0.0 h	0.0 h	+0.0 h
July	0.0 h	0.0 h	+0.0 h
August	3.4 h	1.3 h	+2.1 h
September	8.8 h	8.4 h	+0.4 h
October	12.6 h	12.7 h	-0.1 h
November	16.1 h	16.6 h	-0.5 h
December	18.2 h	19.1 h	-0.9 h

Difference: Kovdor minus Nikel. Each figure links to that town's month page.

Season and midnight sun

Kovdor has no civil darkness from May 4 to August 7, 96 nights in 2026, and its dark season, 4 or more evening hours of civil night, lasts 249 days. Nikel has no civil darkness from April 28 to August 14, 109 nights in 2026, and its dark season, 4 or more evening hours of civil night, lasts 240 days.

Distance, cloud and time zones

The two towns are 206 km apart by great circle. In the dark months Kovdor averages 80% cloud and Nikel 83%, from NASA POWER's 2001 to 2020 record. Kovdor's best month by civil night times clear sky is January. Nikel's best month by civil night times clear sky is January. Time zones: Europe/Moscow and Europe/Moscow.

For tonight, open the live pages for Kovdor and Nikel, which carry the live OVATION cell.

Questions

Is Kovdor or Nikel better for the northern lights?: Nikel sits closer to the oval, at 65.7 degrees geomagnetic against 64.0. 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, Kovdor or Nikel?: Nikel, with 19.1 hours of civil night on December 15 against 18.2 in Kovdor.
What Kp do Kovdor and Nikel need?: By SWPC's rule of 66 degrees at Kp 0 and 2 degrees per step, Kovdor needs about Kp 2 and Nikel Kp 1 for the average oval edge to sit overhead.
When is it too light for aurora in Kovdor and Nikel?: Kovdor: May 4 to August 7. Nikel: April 28 to August 14.
Which is clearer, Kovdor or Nikel?: Kovdor, with 80% mean cloud in the months with 4 hours or more of civil night against 83% in Nikel (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.