Sakha, Russia
Northern lights in Aykhal
Answer
Tonight
Darkness window open
Civil darkness has begun.
Observed 11:49 UTC, forecast 13:20 UTC, 91 min lead
Clock times in Asia/Yakutsk
Storm level needed
Aykhal sits at 65.93N 111.48E in Sakha, Russia. The IGRF-14 centered dipole puts Aykhal at 56.7 degrees geomagnetic latitude, 9.2 degrees farther from the magnetic pole than its map latitude suggests. Aykhal sits at 56.7 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.
"aurora is commonly visible at high latitudes (northern Michigan and Maine)"
The nearest other Glow towns are Udachny (69 km), Talnakh (1,043 km), Norilsk (1,048 km). Udachny sits 0.5 degrees higher on the dipole and needs the same Kp.
Approximate: SWPC calls its Kp to latitude rule an average, and a centered dipole can differ by a degree from fuller field models. How the storm level is matched
The year in darkness
From May 10 to August 2 the sun never reaches -6 degrees, so 85 nights in 2026 have no civil darkness at all. SWPC puts it plainly: "It must also be dark so during the summer months at auroral latitudes, the midnight sun prevents auroral observations." Glow's dark season, at least 4 hours of civil night between 18:00 and 06:00, runs from August 13 to April 28 across New Year, 259 days in 2026. Aykhal's longest night of the year, Dec 19, has 17 h 36 min of civil night.
Solar midnight at Aykhal, when the sun is lowest, falls at 01:29 on local clocks on December 15 and 01:34 on June 15. That is 1 h 29 min after midnight in December and 1 h 34 min after midnight in June, the gap set by daylight saving and the equation of time. So at Aykhal the darkest hour sits late in SWPC's 10 PM to 2 AM window.
Month by month
| Month | Night | Civil | Cloud | Clear dark | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 16.6 h | 12.2 h | 45% | 9.1 h | |
| Feb | 13.6 h | 9.7 h | 42% | 7.9 h | |
| Mar | 10.4 h | 6.0 h | 48% | 5.5 h | |
| Apr | 6.3 h | 0.0 h | 64% | 2.3 h | |
| May | 0.0 h | 0.0 h | 74% | 0.0 h | |
| Jun | 0.0 h | 0.0 h | 67% | 0.0 h | |
| Jul | 0.0 h | 0.0 h | 66% | 0.0 h | |
| Aug | 4.4 h | 0.0 h | 71% | 1.3 h | |
| Sep | 8.9 h | 3.6 h | 77% | 2.1 h | |
| Oct | 12.5 h | 8.5 h | 82% | 2.3 h | |
| Nov | 15.7 h | 11.5 h | 59% | 6.4 h | |
| Dec | 17.5 h | 12.9 h | 44% | 9.8 hbest |
By the 15th-of-the-month sample, December is the darkest month at Aykhal with 17.5 hours of civil night and May the lightest at 0.0. Across the year Aykhal gets 3,220 hours of civil night. Astronomical night at Aykhal, the sun 18 degrees or more below the horizon, lasts 12.9 hours on December 15.
NASA POWER's 2001 to 2020 all-hours climatology puts mean cloud amount for the 1 degree cell around Aykhal at 62% across the year, from 42% in February to 82% in October. In the months with at least 4 hours of civil night Aykhal averages 59%, against a median of 77% for Glow towns in Russia.
Multiplying civil night by the clear share of the sky gives December the best score, 9.8 hours, ahead of January at 9.1. Aykhal's equinox months score 5.5 in March and 2.1 in September, the weeks SWPC links with larger storms.
Kp history
From 1996 to 2025, the GFZ Potsdam record shows a 3-hour Kp of 5 or more, the level that puts the average oval edge over Aykhal, on 10% of days. At Aykhal's level the share runs from 5% in December to 14% in September, while storm days with Kp 5 or more made up 10%.
Share of UTC days in each calendar month whose highest 3-hour Kp reached Kp 5. Kp history by year
Moon, next 30 nights
Over the 30 nights from Oct 2, the new moon falls on Oct 11 and the full moon on Oct 26, in Asia/Yakutsk dates. 15 of the 30 nights at Aykhal have at least 2 moon-free dark hours inside 10 PM to 2 AM, and Oct 6 has the most at 4 h. Tonight Aykhal has 11 h of civil night, 0 min of it with the moon down.
- 2
61% lit
0.0 h
- 3
49% lit
0.0 h
- 4
38% lit
1.0 h
- 5
27% lit
4.3 h
- 6
18% lit
6.6 h
- 7
10% lit
8.6 h
- 8
5% lit
10.4 h
- 9
1% lit
11.8 h
- 10
0% lit
11.9 h
- 11
1% lit
12.0 h
- 12
4% lit
12.1 h
- 13
9% lit
12.3 h
- 14
15% lit
12.4 h
- 15
23% lit
12.5 h
- 16
31% lit
12.6 h
- 17
40% lit
12.7 h
- 18
50% lit
12.8 h
- 19
59% lit
9.5 h
- 20
69% lit
7.5 h
- 21
77% lit
5.7 h
- 22
85% lit
4.0 h
- 23
92% lit
2.3 h
- 24
97% lit
0.5 h
- 25
99% lit
0.0 h
- 26
100% lit
0.0 h
- 27
97% lit
0.0 h
- 28
92% lit
0.0 h
- 29
84% lit
0.0 h
- 30
75% lit
0.0 h
- 31
64% lit
0.0 h
Each cell is the night that starts on that date. Hours are civil-dark time with the moon below the horizon; the green rule scales with them. Green outline: new moon. Bone outline: full moon.
Within Russia
Among the 2 Glow towns in Sakha, Aykhal ranks 2nd by dipole latitude against a regional median of 57.0 degrees; Udachny sits highest at 57.2. Among the 77 Glow towns in Russia, Aykhal ranks 49th by dipole latitude against a national median of 57.3 degrees; Nikel sits highest at 65.7. On December 15 Aykhal gets 17.5 hours of civil night, 24th longest of 77 in Russia, where the median is 16.7.
Questions
- Can you see the northern lights in Aykhal?
- Aykhal sits at 56.7 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. Clear, dark sky over Aykhal still decides it.
- When is it dark enough in Aykhal?
- Civil night, the sun at -6 degrees or lower, is missing from May 10 to Aug 2. Tonight has 11 h of it.
- What is the best month for aurora in Aykhal?
- December, by civil night at Aykhal times the clear share of the sky from NASA POWER's 2001 to 2020 average.
- How cloudy is Aykhal in the dark months?
- About 59% mean cloud amount over Aykhal in the months with at least 4 hours of civil night, from NASA POWER's 2001 to 2020 all-hours climatology.
- How often is activity high enough for Aykhal?
- A 3-hour Kp of 5 or more, the level that puts the average oval edge overhead, occurred on 10% of days from 1996 to 2025 in the GFZ Potsdam record.
Nearby and related
Nearest Glow towns
Aykhal by month
Region and comparisons