Is Ukhta or Narian-Mar better for the northern lights?

Narian-Mar sits closer to the oval, at 61.3 degrees geomagnetic against 57.3. 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, Ukhta or Narian-Mar?

Narian-Mar, with 18.2 hours of civil night on December 15 against 16.8 in Ukhta.

What Kp do Ukhta and Narian-Mar need?

By SWPC's rule of 66 degrees at Kp 0 and 2 degrees per step, Ukhta needs about Kp 5 and Narian-Mar Kp 3 for the average oval edge to sit overhead.

When is it too light for aurora in Ukhta and Narian-Mar?

Ukhta: May 20 to July 22. Narian-Mar: May 3 to August 8.

Which is clearer, Ukhta or Narian-Mar?

Ukhta, with 76% mean cloud in the months with 4 hours or more of civil night against 78% in Narian-Mar (NASA POWER, 2001 to 2020).

Comparison

Ukhta vs Narian-Mar for the northern lights

Answer

Narian-Mar sits 4.0 degrees higher on the IGRF-14 dipole, 61.3 against 57.3. By SWPC's oval-edge rule Narian-Mar needs about Kp 3 for the average edge to sit overhead and Ukhta Kp 5. On the map Narian-Mar is also closer to the pole, by 4.1 degrees.

57.3° / 61.3°

dipole latitude

Side by side

Computed figures for both towns
Figure	Ukhta	Narian-Mar
Dipole latitude	57.3°	61.3°
Kp for the oval edge overhead	Kp 5	Kp 3
Civil night, December 15	16.8 h	18.2 h
Dark-season days	273	249
Nights with no civil darkness	64	98
Dark-month cloud, NASA POWER	76%	78%
Solar midnight, December 15	23:20	23:23

Ukhta sits at 57.3 degrees geomagnetic. By SWPC's rule the average oval edge is overhead at Kp 5, and aurora is usually visible on the northern horizon at G1 (Kp 5) or less. Narian-Mar sits at 61.3 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 3.

Civil night month by month

On December 15 Ukhta has 16.8 hours of civil night and Narian-Mar 18.2. Across the 15th of each month, Ukhta is darker in 5 months and Narian-Mar in 5. The widest gap comes in August, when Ukhta has 2.1 more hours.

Hours of civil night on the 15th of each month, 2026
Month	Ukhta	Narian-Mar	Difference
January	16.0 h	17.1 h	-1.1 h
February	13.4 h	13.8 h	-0.4 h
March	10.6 h	10.3 h	+0.3 h
April	7.0 h	5.7 h	+1.3 h
May	2.1 h	0.0 h	+2.1 h
June	0.0 h	0.0 h	+0.0 h
July	0.0 h	0.0 h	+0.0 h
August	5.4 h	3.3 h	+2.1 h
September	9.3 h	8.7 h	+0.6 h
October	12.4 h	12.6 h	-0.2 h
November	15.2 h	16.1 h	-0.9 h
December	16.8 h	18.2 h	-1.4 h

Difference: Ukhta minus Narian-Mar. Each figure links to that town's month page.

Season and midnight sun

Ukhta has no civil darkness from May 20 to July 22, 64 nights in 2026, and its dark season, 4 or more evening hours of civil night, lasts 273 days. Narian-Mar has no civil darkness from May 3 to August 8, 98 nights in 2026, and its dark season, 4 or more evening hours of civil night, lasts 249 days.

Distance, cloud and time zones

The two towns are 457 km apart by great circle. In the dark months both average about 77% cloud in NASA POWER's 2001 to 2020 record. Ukhta's best month by civil night times clear sky is February. Narian-Mar's best month by civil night times clear sky is January. Time zones: Europe/Moscow and Europe/Kirov.

For tonight, open the live pages for Ukhta and Narian-Mar, which carry the live OVATION cell.

Questions

Is Ukhta or Narian-Mar better for the northern lights?: Narian-Mar sits closer to the oval, at 61.3 degrees geomagnetic against 57.3. 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, Ukhta or Narian-Mar?: Narian-Mar, with 18.2 hours of civil night on December 15 against 16.8 in Ukhta.
What Kp do Ukhta and Narian-Mar need?: By SWPC's rule of 66 degrees at Kp 0 and 2 degrees per step, Ukhta needs about Kp 5 and Narian-Mar Kp 3 for the average oval edge to sit overhead.
When is it too light for aurora in Ukhta and Narian-Mar?: Ukhta: May 20 to July 22. Narian-Mar: May 3 to August 8.
Which is clearer, Ukhta or Narian-Mar?: Ukhta, with 76% mean cloud in the months with 4 hours or more of civil night against 78% in Narian-Mar (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.