Tasmania, Australia
Southern lights in Launceston
Answer
Tonight
Darkness window open
Civil darkness has begun.
Observed 11:49 UTC, forecast 13:20 UTC, 91 min lead
Clock times in Australia/Hobart
Storm level needed
Launceston sits at 41.44S 147.13E in Tasmania, Australia. The IGRF-14 centered dipole puts Launceston at 48.2 degrees geomagnetic latitude, 6.7 degrees closer to the magnetic pole than its map latitude suggests. Launceston sits at 48.2 degrees geomagnetic. The lowest NOAA storm level whose typical viewing latitude reaches it is G4 (Kp = 8, including a 9-). By SWPC's rule the average oval edge is overhead only at Kp 9.
"aurora has been seen as low as Alabama and northern California (typically 45° geomagnetic lat.)"
The nearest other Glow towns are Devonport (72 km), Burnie (111 km), Hobart (161 km). Devonport 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 Launceston has some civil darkness; the shortest month sample still has 7.6 hours. Every evening of the year at Launceston clears Glow's dark-season bar of 4 hours of civil night between 18:00 and 06:00. Launceston's longest night of the year, Jun 16, has 13 h 41 min of civil night.
Solar midnight at Launceston, when the sun is lowest, falls at 01:06 on local clocks on December 15 and 00:12 on June 15. That is 1 h 6 min after midnight in December and 12 min after midnight in June, the gap set by daylight saving and the equation of time. So at Launceston the darkest hour sits late in SWPC's 10 PM to 2 AM window.
Month by month
| Month | Night | Civil | Cloud | Clear dark | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 8.0 h | 5.0 h | 58% | 3.4 h | |
| Feb | 9.3 h | 6.8 h | 61% | 3.6 h | |
| Mar | 10.6 h | 8.4 h | 60% | 4.2 h | |
| Apr | 12.0 h | 9.9 h | 61% | 4.7 h | |
| May | 13.1 h | 10.9 h | 60% | 5.2 h | |
| Jun | 13.7 h | 11.4 h | 60% | 5.5 hbest | |
| Jul | 13.4 h | 11.2 h | 61% | 5.2 h | |
| Aug | 12.5 h | 10.3 h | 61% | 4.9 h | |
| Sep | 11.2 h | 9.0 h | 61% | 4.4 h | |
| Oct | 9.8 h | 7.4 h | 61% | 3.8 h | |
| Nov | 8.4 h | 5.6 h | 64% | 3.0 h | |
| Dec | 7.6 h | 4.4 h | 62% | 2.9 h |
By the 15th-of-the-month sample, June is the darkest month at Launceston with 13.7 hours of civil night and December the lightest at 7.6. Across the year Launceston gets 3,940 hours of civil night. Astronomical night at Launceston, the sun 18 degrees or more below the horizon, lasts 4.4 hours on December 15.
NASA POWER's 2001 to 2020 all-hours climatology puts mean cloud amount for the 1 degree cell around Launceston at 61% across the year, from 58% in January to 64% in November. In the months with at least 4 hours of civil night Launceston averages 61%, against a median of 60% for Glow towns in Australia.
Multiplying civil night by the clear share of the sky gives June the best score, 5.5 hours, ahead of May at 5.2. Launceston's equinox months score 4.2 in March and 4.4 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 9 or more, the level that puts the average oval edge over Launceston, on 0% of days. At Launceston's level the share runs from 0% in January to 0% in October, 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 9. 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 Australia/Hobart dates. 15 of the 30 nights at Launceston have at least 2 moon-free dark hours inside 10 PM to 2 AM, and Oct 4 has the most at 4 h. Tonight Launceston has 10 h 24 min of civil night, 6 h 20 min of it with the moon down.
- 2
61% lit
6.3 h
- 3
50% lit
7.2 h
- 4
39% lit
8.0 h
- 5
28% lit
8.5 h
- 6
19% lit
9.0 h
- 7
11% lit
9.3 h
- 8
5% lit
9.7 h
- 9
1% lit
10.0 h
- 10
0% lit
10.0 h
- 11
1% lit
9.7 h
- 12
4% lit
8.6 h
- 13
9% lit
7.4 h
- 14
15% lit
6.3 h
- 15
22% lit
5.3 h
- 16
31% lit
4.5 h
- 17
39% lit
3.7 h
- 18
49% lit
3.0 h
- 19
58% lit
2.5 h
- 20
68% lit
2.0 h
- 21
77% lit
1.6 h
- 22
85% lit
1.3 h
- 23
91% lit
0.9 h
- 24
96% lit
0.5 h
- 25
99% lit
0.0 h
- 26
100% lit
0.0 h
- 27
97% lit
1.1 h
- 28
92% lit
2.4 h
- 29
85% lit
3.6 h
- 30
75% lit
4.6 h
- 31
65% lit
5.4 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 Australia
Among the 4 Glow towns in Tasmania, Launceston ranks 2nd by dipole latitude against a regional median of 48.1 degrees; Hobart sits highest at 49.6. Among the 14 Glow towns in Australia, Launceston ranks 2nd by dipole latitude against a national median of 45.4 degrees; Hobart sits highest at 49.6. On December 15 Launceston gets 7.6 hours of civil night, 13th longest of 14 in Australia, where the median is 8.0.
Questions
- Can you see the southern lights in Launceston?
- Launceston sits at 48.2 degrees geomagnetic. The lowest NOAA storm level whose typical viewing latitude reaches it is G4 (Kp = 8, including a 9-). By SWPC's rule the average oval edge is overhead only at Kp 9. Clear, dark sky over Launceston still decides it.
- When is it dark enough in Launceston?
- Every night at Launceston has civil darkness. Tonight has 10 h 24 min, and December 15 has 7.6 hours.
- What is the best month for aurora in Launceston?
- June, by civil night at Launceston times the clear share of the sky from NASA POWER's 2001 to 2020 average.
- How cloudy is Launceston in the dark months?
- About 61% mean cloud amount over Launceston 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 Launceston?
- A 3-hour Kp of 9 or more, the level that puts the average oval edge overhead, occurred on 0% of days from 1996 to 2025 in the GFZ Potsdam record.
Nearby and related
Nearest Glow towns
Launceston by month
Region and comparisons