Västmanland, Sweden
Northern lights in Köping
Answer
Tonight
Waiting on darkness
It is not civil-dark yet. The next dusk is listed below.
Observed 11:49 UTC, forecast 13:20 UTC, 91 min lead
Clock times in Europe/Stockholm
Storm level needed
Köping sits at 59.51N 15.99E in Västmanland, Sweden. The IGRF-14 centered dipole puts Köping at 58.5 degrees geomagnetic latitude, 1.0 degrees farther from the magnetic pole than its map latitude suggests. Köping sits at 58.5 degrees geomagnetic. By SWPC's rule the average oval edge is overhead at Kp 4, 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 Eskilstuna (33 km), Västerås (34 km), Örebro (52 km). Eskilstuna sits 0.2 degrees lower 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
Every night of 2026 at Köping has some civil darkness; the shortest month sample still has 1.7 hours. Glow's dark season, at least 4 hours of civil night between 18:00 and 06:00, runs from July 21 to May 20 across New Year, 304 days in 2026. Köping's longest night of the year, Dec 18, has 15 h 57 min of civil night.
Solar midnight at Köping, when the sun is lowest, falls at 23:51 on local clocks on December 15 and 00:56 on June 15. That is 9 min before midnight in December and 56 min after midnight in June, the gap set by daylight saving and the equation of time. So at Köping the darkest hour sits near the middle of SWPC's 10 PM to 2 AM window in winter.
Month by month
| Month | Night | Civil | Cloud | Clear dark | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 15.3 h | 11.9 h | 82% | 2.8 h | |
| Feb | 13.1 h | 9.9 h | 81% | 2.5 h | |
| Mar | 10.7 h | 7.3 h | 74% | 2.8 h | |
| Apr | 7.8 h | 2.8 h | 69% | 2.4 h | |
| May | 4.6 h | 0.0 h | 70% | 1.4 h | |
| Jun | 1.7 h | 0.0 h | 69% | 0.5 h | |
| Jul | 3.4 h | 0.0 h | 69% | 1.1 h | |
| Aug | 6.6 h | 0.0 h | 70% | 2.0 h | |
| Sep | 9.6 h | 6.0 h | 72% | 2.7 h | |
| Oct | 12.3 h | 9.1 h | 75% | 3.1 h | |
| Nov | 14.7 h | 11.3 h | 79% | 3.1 hbest | |
| Dec | 15.9 h | 12.4 h | 81% | 3.0 h |
By the 15th-of-the-month sample, December is the darkest month at Köping with 15.9 hours of civil night and June the lightest at 1.7. Across the year Köping gets 3,515 hours of civil night. Astronomical night at Köping, the sun 18 degrees or more below the horizon, lasts 12.4 hours on December 15.
NASA POWER's 2001 to 2020 all-hours climatology puts mean cloud amount for the 1 degree cell around Köping at 74% across the year, from 69% in April to 82% in January. In the months with at least 4 hours of civil night Köping averages 75%, against a median of 75% for Glow towns in Sweden.
Multiplying civil night by the clear share of the sky gives November the best score, 3.1 hours, ahead of October at 3.1. Köping's equinox months score 2.8 in March and 2.7 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 4 or more, the level that puts the average oval edge over Köping, on 24% of days. At Köping's level the share runs from 19% in December to 31% 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 4. Kp history by year
Moon, next 30 nights
Over the 30 nights from Oct 2, the new moon falls on Oct 10 and the full moon on Oct 26, in Europe/Stockholm dates. 15 of the 30 nights at Köping have at least 2 moon-free dark hours inside 10 PM to 2 AM, and Oct 6 has the most at 4 h. Tonight Köping has 11 h 10 min of civil night, 47 min of it with the moon down.
- 2
57% lit
0.8 h
- 3
46% lit
2.3 h
- 4
35% lit
4.1 h
- 5
25% lit
5.9 h
- 6
16% lit
7.6 h
- 7
8% lit
9.3 h
- 8
3% lit
10.8 h
- 9
1% lit
11.8 h
- 10
0% lit
11.9 h
- 11
2% lit
11.9 h
- 12
5% lit
12.0 h
- 13
11% lit
12.1 h
- 14
17% lit
12.2 h
- 15
25% lit
12.3 h
- 16
34% lit
11.8 h
- 17
43% lit
10.6 h
- 18
52% lit
9.1 h
- 19
62% lit
7.6 h
- 20
71% lit
6.2 h
- 21
80% lit
4.7 h
- 22
87% lit
3.3 h
- 23
94% lit
1.8 h
- 24
98% lit
0.2 h
- 25
100% lit
0.0 h
- 26
99% lit
0.0 h
- 27
95% lit
0.0 h
- 28
89% lit
0.0 h
- 29
81% lit
0.0 h
- 30
71% lit
1.3 h
- 31
60% lit
3.0 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 Sweden
Among the 2 Glow towns in Västmanland, Köping ranks 2nd by dipole latitude against a regional median of 58.5 degrees; Västerås sits highest at 58.5. Among the 74 Glow towns in Sweden, Köping ranks 22nd by dipole latitude against a national median of 57.9 degrees; Kiruna sits highest at 65.7. On December 15 Köping gets 15.9 hours of civil night, 19th longest of 74 in Sweden, where the median is 15.8.
Questions
- Can you see the northern lights in Köping?
- Köping sits at 58.5 degrees geomagnetic. By SWPC's rule the average oval edge is overhead at Kp 4, and aurora is usually visible on the northern horizon at G1 (Kp 5) or less. Clear, dark sky over Köping still decides it.
- When is it dark enough in Köping?
- Every night at Köping has civil darkness. Tonight has 11 h 10 min, and December 15 has 15.9 hours.
- What is the best month for aurora in Köping?
- November, by civil night at Köping times the clear share of the sky from NASA POWER's 2001 to 2020 average.
- How cloudy is Köping in the dark months?
- About 75% mean cloud amount over Köping 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 Köping?
- A 3-hour Kp of 4 or more, the level that puts the average oval edge overhead, occurred on 24% of days from 1996 to 2025 in the GFZ Potsdam record.
Nearby and related
Nearest Glow towns
Köping by month
Region and comparisons