Yamalo-Nenets, Russia
Northern lights in Salekhard
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 Asia/Yekaterinburg
Storm level needed
Salekhard sits at 66.53N 66.61E in Yamalo-Nenets, Russia. The IGRF-14 centered dipole puts Salekhard at 59.0 degrees geomagnetic latitude, 7.5 degrees farther from the magnetic pole than its map latitude suggests. Salekhard sits at 59.0 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 Labytnangi (16 km), Vorkuta (155 km), Vorgashor (169 km). Labytnangi sits 0.1 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 7 to August 4 the sun never reaches -6 degrees, so 90 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 15 to April 26 across New Year, 255 days in 2026. Salekhard's longest night of the year, Dec 19, has 17 h 49 min of civil night.
Solar midnight at Salekhard, when the sun is lowest, falls at 00:29 on local clocks on December 15 and 00:34 on June 15. That is 29 min after midnight in December and 34 min after midnight in June, the gap set by daylight saving and the equation of time. So at Salekhard 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 | 16.7 h | 12.3 h | 63% | 6.2 h | |
| Feb | 13.7 h | 9.6 h | 63% | 5.1 h | |
| Mar | 10.4 h | 5.8 h | 65% | 3.6 h | |
| Apr | 6.2 h | 0.0 h | 68% | 2.0 h | |
| May | 0.0 h | 0.0 h | 74% | 0.0 h | |
| Jun | 0.0 h | 0.0 h | 70% | 0.0 h | |
| Jul | 0.0 h | 0.0 h | 65% | 0.0 h | |
| Aug | 4.1 h | 0.0 h | 77% | 0.9 h | |
| Sep | 8.9 h | 3.3 h | 78% | 2.0 h | |
| Oct | 12.5 h | 8.4 h | 84% | 2.0 h | |
| Nov | 15.8 h | 11.5 h | 72% | 4.4 h | |
| Dec | 17.8 h | 13.0 h | 65% | 6.2 hbest |
By the 15th-of-the-month sample, December is the darkest month at Salekhard with 17.8 hours of civil night and May the lightest at 0.0. Across the year Salekhard gets 3,207 hours of civil night. Astronomical night at Salekhard, the sun 18 degrees or more below the horizon, lasts 13.0 hours on December 15.
NASA POWER's 2001 to 2020 all-hours climatology puts mean cloud amount for the 1 degree cell around Salekhard at 70% across the year, from 63% in January to 84% in October. In the months with at least 4 hours of civil night Salekhard averages 71%, 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, 6.2 hours, ahead of January at 6.2. Salekhard's equinox months score 3.6 in March and 2.0 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 Salekhard, on 24% of days. At Salekhard'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 Asia/Yekaterinburg dates. 15 of the 30 nights at Salekhard have at least 2 moon-free dark hours inside 10 PM to 2 AM, and Oct 7 has the most at 4 h. Tonight Salekhard has 11 h of civil night, 0 min of it with the moon down.
- 2
59% lit
0.0 h
- 3
47% lit
0.0 h
- 4
36% lit
0.3 h
- 5
26% lit
4.5 h
- 6
17% lit
6.8 h
- 7
9% lit
8.8 h
- 8
4% lit
10.7 h
- 9
1% lit
11.8 h
- 10
0% lit
11.9 h
- 11
2% lit
12.1 h
- 12
5% lit
12.2 h
- 13
10% lit
12.3 h
- 14
17% lit
12.4 h
- 15
24% lit
12.5 h
- 16
33% lit
12.6 h
- 17
42% lit
12.7 h
- 18
51% lit
12.8 h
- 19
61% lit
9.4 h
- 20
70% lit
7.4 h
- 21
79% lit
5.6 h
- 22
87% lit
3.9 h
- 23
93% lit
2.1 h
- 24
97% lit
0.2 h
- 25
100% lit
0.0 h
- 26
99% lit
0.0 h
- 27
96% lit
0.0 h
- 28
91% lit
0.0 h
- 29
83% lit
0.0 h
- 30
73% lit
0.0 h
- 31
62% 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 8 Glow towns in Yamalo-Nenets, Salekhard ranks 2nd by dipole latitude against a regional median of 57.1 degrees; Labytnangi sits highest at 59.1. Among the 77 Glow towns in Russia, Salekhard ranks 29th by dipole latitude against a national median of 57.3 degrees; Nikel sits highest at 65.7. On December 15 Salekhard gets 17.8 hours of civil night, 18th longest of 77 in Russia, where the median is 16.7.
Questions
- Can you see the northern lights in Salekhard?
- Salekhard sits at 59.0 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 Salekhard still decides it.
- When is it dark enough in Salekhard?
- Civil night, the sun at -6 degrees or lower, is missing from May 7 to Aug 4. Tonight has 11 h of it.
- What is the best month for aurora in Salekhard?
- December, by civil night at Salekhard times the clear share of the sky from NASA POWER's 2001 to 2020 average.
- How cloudy is Salekhard in the dark months?
- About 71% mean cloud amount over Salekhard 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 Salekhard?
- 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
Salekhard by month
Region and comparisons