Dalarna, Sweden
Northern lights in Ludvika
Answer
Tonight
Waiting on darkness
It is not civil-dark yet. The next dusk is listed below.
Observed 11:55 UTC, forecast 13:26 UTC, 91 min lead
Clock times in Europe/Stockholm
Storm level needed
Ludvika sits at 60.15N 15.19E in Dalarna, Sweden. The IGRF-14 centered dipole puts Ludvika at 59.2 degrees geomagnetic latitude, 0.9 degrees farther from the magnetic pole than its map latitude suggests. Ludvika sits at 59.2 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 Borlänge (40 km), Falun (56 km), Köping (84 km). Borlänge sits 0.3 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 June 16 to June 25 the sun never reaches -6 degrees, so 10 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 July 24 to May 18 across New Year, 299 days in 2026. Ludvika's longest night of the year, Dec 20, has 16 h 5 min of civil night.
Solar midnight at Ludvika, when the sun is lowest, falls at 23:54 on local clocks on December 15 and 00:59 on June 15. That is 6 min before midnight in December and 59 min after midnight in June, the gap set by daylight saving and the equation of time. So at Ludvika 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 | 15.4 h | 11.9 h | 79% | 3.2 h | |
| Feb | 13.2 h | 9.9 h | 77% | 3.0 h | |
| Mar | 10.7 h | 7.3 h | 68% | 3.4 h | |
| Apr | 7.7 h | 2.3 h | 66% | 2.6 h | |
| May | 4.4 h | 0.0 h | 68% | 1.4 h | |
| Jun | 0.3 h | 0.0 h | 67% | 0.1 h | |
| Jul | 3.0 h | 0.0 h | 69% | 0.9 h | |
| Aug | 6.5 h | 0.0 h | 68% | 2.1 h | |
| Sep | 9.6 h | 5.8 h | 68% | 3.1 h | |
| Oct | 12.3 h | 9.1 h | 73% | 3.3 h | |
| Nov | 14.7 h | 11.4 h | 80% | 2.9 h | |
| Dec | 16.0 h | 12.4 h | 77% | 3.7 hbest |
By the 15th-of-the-month sample, December is the darkest month at Ludvika with 16.0 hours of civil night and June the lightest at 0.4. Across the year Ludvika gets 3,458 hours of civil night. Astronomical night at Ludvika, 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 Ludvika at 72% across the year, from 66% in April to 80% in November. In the months with at least 4 hours of civil night Ludvika averages 72%, against a median of 75% for Glow towns in Sweden.
Multiplying civil night by the clear share of the sky gives December the best score, 3.7 hours, ahead of March at 3.4. Ludvika's equinox months score 3.4 in March and 3.1 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 4 or more, the level that puts the average oval edge over Ludvika, on 24% of days. At Ludvika'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 Ludvika have at least 2 moon-free dark hours inside 10 PM to 2 AM, and Oct 6 has the most at 4 h. Tonight Ludvika has 11 h 9 min of civil night, 35 min of it with the moon down.
- 2
57% lit
0.6 h
- 3
46% lit
2.1 h
- 4
35% lit
4.0 h
- 5
25% lit
5.8 h
- 6
16% lit
7.6 h
- 7
8% lit
9.3 h
- 8
3% lit
10.9 h
- 9
1% lit
11.8 h
- 10
0% lit
11.9 h
- 11
2% lit
11.9 h
- 12
5% lit
12.1 h
- 13
11% lit
12.1 h
- 14
17% lit
12.2 h
- 15
25% lit
12.3 h
- 16
34% lit
12.1 h
- 17
43% lit
10.7 h
- 18
52% lit
9.2 h
- 19
62% lit
7.7 h
- 20
71% lit
6.2 h
- 21
80% lit
4.8 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
1.1 h
- 31
60% lit
2.9 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 3 Glow towns in Dalarna, Ludvika ranks 3rd by dipole latitude against a regional median of 59.5 degrees; Falun sits highest at 59.6. Among the 74 Glow towns in Sweden, Ludvika ranks 16th by dipole latitude against a national median of 57.9 degrees; Kiruna sits highest at 65.7. On December 15 Ludvika gets 16.0 hours of civil night, 16th longest of 74 in Sweden, where the median is 15.8.
Questions
- Can you see the northern lights in Ludvika?
- Ludvika sits at 59.2 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 Ludvika still decides it.
- When is it dark enough in Ludvika?
- Civil night, the sun at -6 degrees or lower, is missing from Jun 16 to Jun 25. Tonight has 11 h 9 min of it.
- What is the best month for aurora in Ludvika?
- December, by civil night at Ludvika times the clear share of the sky from NASA POWER's 2001 to 2020 average.
- How cloudy is Ludvika in the dark months?
- About 72% mean cloud amount over Ludvika 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 Ludvika?
- 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
Ludvika by month
Region and comparisons