Is Murmansk or Olenegorsk better for the northern lights?

Murmansk sits closer to the oval, at 64.9 degrees geomagnetic against 64.1. 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, Murmansk or Olenegorsk?

Murmansk, with 18.8 hours of civil night on December 15 against 18.4 in Olenegorsk.

What Kp do Murmansk and Olenegorsk need?

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

When is it too light for aurora in Murmansk and Olenegorsk?

Murmansk: April 29 to August 12. Olenegorsk: May 2 to August 9.

Which is clearer, Murmansk or Olenegorsk?

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

Comparison

Murmansk vs Olenegorsk for the northern lights

Answer

Murmansk sits 0.8 degrees higher on the IGRF-14 dipole, 64.9 against 64.1. By SWPC's oval-edge rule Murmansk needs about Kp 1 for the average edge to sit overhead and Olenegorsk Kp 1. On the map Murmansk is also closer to the pole, by 0.8 degrees.

64.9° / 64.1°

dipole latitude

Side by side

Computed figures for both towns
Figure	Murmansk	Olenegorsk
Dipole latitude	64.9°	64.1°
Kp for the oval edge overhead	Kp 1	Kp 1
Civil night, December 15	18.8 h	18.4 h
Dark-season days	242	247
Nights with no civil darkness	106	100
Dark-month cloud, NASA POWER	81%	81%
Solar midnight, December 15	00:43	00:42

Murmansk sits at 64.9 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 1. Olenegorsk sits at 64.1 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 Murmansk has 18.8 hours of civil night and Olenegorsk 18.4. Across the 15th of each month, Murmansk is darker in 3 months and Olenegorsk in 4. The widest gap comes in August, when Olenegorsk has 0.9 more hours.

Hours of civil night on the 15th of each month, 2026
Month	Murmansk	Olenegorsk	Difference
January	17.5 h	17.2 h	+0.3 h
February	13.9 h	13.9 h	+0.0 h
March	10.2 h	10.3 h	-0.1 h
April	5.2 h	5.5 h	-0.3 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	2.1 h	3.0 h	-0.9 h
September	8.5 h	8.7 h	-0.2 h
October	12.6 h	12.6 h	+0.0 h
November	16.4 h	16.2 h	+0.2 h
December	18.8 h	18.4 h	+0.4 h

Difference: Murmansk minus Olenegorsk. Each figure links to that town's month page.

Season and midnight sun

Murmansk has no civil darkness from April 29 to August 12, 106 nights in 2026, and its dark season, 4 or more evening hours of civil night, lasts 242 days. Olenegorsk has no civil darkness from May 2 to August 9, 100 nights in 2026, and its dark season, 4 or more evening hours of civil night, lasts 247 days.

Distance, cloud and time zones

The two towns are 92 km apart by great circle. In the dark months both average about 81% cloud in NASA POWER's 2001 to 2020 record. Murmansk's best month by civil night times clear sky is January. Olenegorsk'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 Murmansk and Olenegorsk, which carry the live OVATION cell.

Questions

Is Murmansk or Olenegorsk better for the northern lights?: Murmansk sits closer to the oval, at 64.9 degrees geomagnetic against 64.1. 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, Murmansk or Olenegorsk?: Murmansk, with 18.8 hours of civil night on December 15 against 18.4 in Olenegorsk.
What Kp do Murmansk and Olenegorsk need?: By SWPC's rule of 66 degrees at Kp 0 and 2 degrees per step, Murmansk needs about Kp 1 and Olenegorsk Kp 1 for the average oval edge to sit overhead.
When is it too light for aurora in Murmansk and Olenegorsk?: Murmansk: April 29 to August 12. Olenegorsk: May 2 to August 9.
Which is clearer, Murmansk or Olenegorsk?: Murmansk, with 81% mean cloud in the months with 4 hours or more of civil night against 81% in Olenegorsk (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.