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Wanaka · August 2027

Southern lights in Wanaka in August 2027

Answer

August gives Wanaka 12.6 hours of civil night on the 15th, the 4th darkest of its 12 months, under 65% mean cloud. 0% of August days since 1996 reached Kp 9, enough for the oval edge to reach Wanaka.
12.6 h
civil night, average night
SunCalc for -44.70, 169.15; NASA POWER; GFZ Kp

August against the rest of the year

August cloud at Wanaka averages 65% in NASA POWER's 2001 to 2020 record, close to its yearly mean of 65%. June is Wanaka's clearest month at 60%. By civil night times clear sky, August scores 4.4 hours at Wanaka, 5th of 12. Anadyr, 12,190 km away, averages 70%, cloudier by 5 points.

Civil night at Wanaka starts August at 13 h 11 min and reaches 11 h 55 min by August 31, 1.3 hours shorter. SWPC's 10 PM to 2 AM window is fully dark on every night. True astronomical darkness, the sun 18 degrees down, lasts 10.3 hours on the 15th.

August night by night

August opens toward a new moon on Aug 2, with full moon on Aug 17, in Pacific/Auckland dates. Wanaka gets 198 hours of civil night with the moon below the horizon across the month. The best of them for moon-free darkness inside 10 PM to 2 AM: Aug 1 (4 h), Aug 2 (4 h), Aug 3 (4 h).

  1. 1

    1% lit

    13.2 h

  2. 2

    0% lit

    13.2 h

  3. 3

    2% lit

    12.7 h

  4. 4

    6% lit

    11.3 h

  5. 5

    14% lit

    9.9 h

  6. 6

    22% lit

    8.7 h

  7. 7

    32% lit

    7.4 h

  8. 8

    43% lit

    6.1 h

  9. 9

    53% lit

    4.9 h

  10. 10

    63% lit

    3.8 h

  11. 11

    72% lit

    2.8 h

  12. 12

    81% lit

    1.9 h

  13. 13

    88% lit

    1.2 h

  14. 14

    93% lit

    0.6 h

  15. 15

    97% lit

    0.1 h

  16. 16

    99% lit

    0.0 h

  17. 17

    100% lit

    0.0 h

  18. 18

    99% lit

    0.4 h

  19. 19

    96% lit

    1.5 h

  20. 20

    91% lit

    2.5 h

  21. 21

    84% lit

    3.6 h

  22. 22

    76% lit

    4.7 h

  23. 23

    67% lit

    5.9 h

  24. 24

    57% lit

    7.1 h

  25. 25

    46% lit

    8.3 h

  26. 26

    35% lit

    9.3 h

  27. 27

    24% lit

    10.3 h

  28. 28

    15% lit

    11.0 h

  29. 29

    7% lit

    11.6 h

  30. 30

    2% lit

    12.0 h

  31. 31

    0% lit

    11.9 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.

Activity in past Augusts

Wanaka needs Kp 9 for the average oval edge to sit overhead. 0 of the 930 August days from 1996 to 2025 (0%) reached it in the GFZ Potsdam record, 4th of 12 months; storm days with Kp 5 or more made up 11%. Wanaka sits at 48.4 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.

August across New Zealand

Coming from July (13.7 hours at Wanaka), August loses darkness, and September brings shorter nights (11.2 hours on the 15th).

Darkness and moon, every night

Wanaka, August 2027: each night from local noon to the next noon
NightCivilAstronomicalMoon-free darkMoon-free, 10 PM to 2 AMMoon lit
Sun Aug 113 h 11 min10 h 52 min13 h 11 min4 h1%
Mon Aug 213 h 9 min10 h 50 min13 h 9 min4 h0%
Tue Aug 313 h 7 min10 h 48 min12 h 42 min4 h2%
Wed Aug 413 h 4 min10 h 46 min11 h 18 min4 h6%
Thu Aug 513 h 2 min10 h 44 min9 h 57 min4 h14%
Fri Aug 613 h10 h 42 min8 h 39 min3 h 20 min22%
Sat Aug 712 h 58 min10 h 40 min7 h 23 min2 h 5 min32%
Sun Aug 812 h 55 min10 h 38 min6 h 8 min52 min43%
Mon Aug 912 h 53 min10 h 35 min4 h 56 min0 min53%
Tue Aug 1012 h 50 min10 h 33 min3 h 48 min0 min63%
Wed Aug 1112 h 48 min10 h 31 min2 h 47 min0 min72%
Thu Aug 1212 h 46 min10 h 29 min1 h 54 min0 min81%
Fri Aug 1312 h 43 min10 h 26 min1 h 11 min0 min88%
Sat Aug 1412 h 41 min10 h 24 min35 min0 min93%
Sun Aug 1512 h 38 min10 h 22 min6 min0 min97%
Mon Aug 1612 h 36 min10 h 19 min0 min0 min99%
Tue Aug 1712 h 33 min10 h 17 min0 min0 min100%
Wed Aug 1812 h 30 min10 h 14 min26 min0 min99%
Thu Aug 1912 h 28 min10 h 12 min1 h 29 min0 min96%
Fri Aug 2012 h 25 min10 h 9 min2 h 32 min0 min91%
Sat Aug 2112 h 22 min10 h 7 min3 h 37 min12 min84%
Sun Aug 2212 h 20 min10 h 4 min4 h 44 min1 h 20 min76%
Mon Aug 2312 h 17 min10 h 2 min5 h 54 min2 h 31 min67%
Tue Aug 2412 h 14 min9 h 59 min7 h 5 min3 h 43 min57%
Wed Aug 2512 h 12 min9 h 56 min8 h 15 min4 h46%
Thu Aug 2612 h 9 min9 h 53 min9 h 20 min4 h35%
Fri Aug 2712 h 6 min9 h 51 min10 h 15 min4 h24%
Sat Aug 2812 h 3 min9 h 48 min10 h 58 min4 h15%
Sun Aug 2912 h9 h 45 min11 h 33 min4 h7%
Mon Aug 3011 h 58 min9 h 42 min11 h 58 min4 h2%
Tue Aug 3111 h 55 min9 h 40 min11 h 55 min4 h0%
Moon lit: SunCalc illuminated fraction at the middle of the 10 PM to 2 AM window.

Questions

Can you see the southern lights in Wanaka in August?
On dark, clear nights with enough activity. 31 of 31 nights at Wanaka have civil darkness, and 0% of past August days reached Kp 9.
How dark is Wanaka in August?
Wanaka averages 12.6 hours of civil night a night in August 2027, from 13 h 11 min on the 1st to 11 h 55 min on the last night.
How cloudy is Wanaka in August?
NASA POWER's 2001 to 2020 climatology gives Wanaka's 1 degree cell 65% mean cloud in August, against 65% for the whole year. It is an all-hours average, not a forecast.
What is the best night in August 2027 for aurora in Wanaka?
By darkness and moon alone, Aug 1, with 4 h of moon-free darkness inside 10 PM to 2 AM at Wanaka. Activity on that date will only be known hours ahead.
Is August or September better in Wanaka?
By civil night times the clear share, August scores 4.4 hours at Wanaka and September 3.8. August comes out ahead.

Sources and verification

Quoted figures last checked against their sources on 2026-09-30; next review 2026-12-31. Computed figures come from SunCalc and the IGRF-14 dipole as described in the methodology. Every quote is listed in the sources ledger.