Russia · 12 towns
Aurora towns in Murmansk
Answer
Where the towns sit
The widest gap in the dipole ranking falls between Murmansk and Olenegorsk, 0.8 degrees. 7 neighbouring pairs sit within 0.5 degrees of each other, close enough that the order between them means little.
Of the 10 indexed towns in Murmansk, 10 sit at 60 degrees geomagnetic or more, in or poleward of SWPC's 60 to 75 degree band, where no storm is needed.
Ranked by geomagnetic latitude
| Rank | Town | Value |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nikel | 65.7° |
| 2 | Zapolyarnyy | 65.6° |
| 3 | Severomorsk | 65.0° |
| 4 | Murmansk | 64.9° |
| 5 | Olenegorsk | 64.1° |
| 6 | Monchegorsk | 64.0° |
| 7 | Kovdor | 64.0° |
| 8 | Apatity | 63.6° |
| 9 | Polyarnyye Zori | 63.5° |
| 10 | Kandalaksha | 63.3° |
Ranked by December darkness
On December 15 the median town gets 18.4 hours of civil night, against 16.7 nationally. Nikel has the most at 19.1 hours and Kandalaksha the least at 18.0. 10 of these towns lose civil darkness altogether around the June solstice; Nikel goes longest, 109 nights.
| Rank | Town | Value |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nikel | 19.1 h |
| 2 | Zapolyarnyy | 19.1 h |
| 3 | Severomorsk | 18.9 h |
| 4 | Murmansk | 18.8 h |
| 5 | Olenegorsk | 18.4 h |
| 6 | Monchegorsk | 18.3 h |
| 7 | Kovdor | 18.2 h |
| 8 | Apatity | 18.2 h |
| 9 | Polyarnyye Zori | 18.1 h |
| 10 | Kandalaksha | 18.0 h |
Ranked by clear dark season
NASA POWER's 2001 to 2020 climatology puts median cloud amount in the dark months at 81%, against 77% nationally. Monchegorsk is clearest at 79% and Severomorsk cloudiest at 84%. These are all-hours averages for 1 degree cells, not forecasts.
| Rank | Town | Value |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Monchegorsk | 79% |
| 2 | Apatity | 79% |
| 3 | Polyarnyye Zori | 79% |
| 4 | Kandalaksha | 79% |
| 5 | Kovdor | 80% |
| 6 | Murmansk | 81% |
| 7 | Olenegorsk | 81% |
| 8 | Nikel | 83% |
| 9 | Zapolyarnyy | 83% |
| 10 | Severomorsk | 84% |
Multiplying civil night by the clear share of the sky, January comes out best for 10 of the 10 towns. SWPC notes a tendency toward larger storms near the equinoxes, which this score does not include.
Every town
| Town | Dipole | Storm needed | Dec 15 night | Dark-month cloud | Best month |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nikel | 65.7° | none | 19.1 h | 83% | Jan |
| Zapolyarnyy | 65.6° | none | 19.1 h | 83% | Jan |
| Polyarnyy * | 65.1° | none | 18.9 h | 84% | Jan |
| Severomorsk | 65.0° | none | 18.9 h | 84% | Jan |
| Murmansk | 64.9° | none | 18.8 h | 81% | Jan |
| Olenegorsk | 64.1° | none | 18.4 h | 81% | Jan |
| Monchegorsk | 64.0° | none | 18.3 h | 79% | Jan |
| Kovdor | 64.0° | none | 18.2 h | 80% | Jan |
| Apatity | 63.6° | none | 18.2 h | 79% | Jan |
| Kirovsk, Murmansk * | 63.6° | none | 18.2 h | 79% | Jan |
| Polyarnyye Zori | 63.5° | none | 18.1 h | 79% | Jan |
| Kandalaksha | 63.3° | none | 18.0 h | 79% | Jan |
Questions
- Where in Murmansk is best for the aurora?
- By geomagnetic latitude, Nikel at 65.7°. 10 towns sit at 60 degrees or more, where no storm is needed.
- Which town in Murmansk has the longest December night?
- Nikel, with 19.1 hours of civil night on December 15.
- Which town in Murmansk has the clearest dark season?
- Monchegorsk, with 79% mean cloud amount in the months with at least 4 hours of civil night (NASA POWER, 2001 to 2020).
- What is the best month for aurora in Murmansk?
- January for 10 of 10 towns, by civil night times the clear share of the sky. Each town page gives its own month.
Sources and verification
- GeoNames dump (CC BY 4.0)https://download.geonames.org/export/dump/
- IGRF-14, NOAA NCEIhttps://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/IAGA/vmod/coeffs/igrf14coeffs.txt
- NASA POWER climatologyhttps://power.larc.nasa.gov/docs/services/api/temporal/climatology/
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.