Northern lights in Svalbard tonight

Svalbard at a glance

Reading the score on Svalbard

• The scale is the same as on the mainland. At night the auroral oval usually lies south of Svalbard, over mainland Northern Norway. Displays here are often fainter and lower in the southern sky, so on the same night Svalbard scores lower than Tromsø. Our local aurora readings come from magnetometers on the mainland, so they don't cover Svalbard.
• A score of 20⁠–⁠40 is normal here. That is what the dark spots outside town usually score on a clear, dark night. Scores of 60 or more come only a few times a season, so if the sky is clear, go out and look.
• The hours around midday count too. From about 20 November to 25 January the sun stays far enough below the horizon all day for the score to count the midday hours. Svalbard's daytime aurora shows then, from about 10:00 to 13:00.
• Longyearbyen's lights lower the score in town. The dark valleys outside town score highest. Because of the polar bear rules, you reach them on a guided tour.

Svalbard: aurora season and dark hours

The nights are dark enough for aurora from about 23 September to 19 March. They are fully dark, with the sun at least 18° below the horizon, from about 9 October to 4 March.

The midnight sun lasts from about 19 April to 23 August.

Both the weather stations and satellite records show that Svalbard is cloudier in October than in February and March.

The table leaves out months with under an hour of darkness a day. Dark hours are the hours a day when the sun is at least 12° below the horizon, dark enough for aurora. In fully dark hours the sun is at least 18° below the horizon. Both are averages over every day of the month, worked out for Longyearbyen. Dates shift by about a day from year to year. You can download these figures as open data from our data sources page.

Mostly clear is the share of night-time observations (19:00–04:00) with cloud covering a quarter of the sky or less, in MET Norway's records for Longyearbyen, 2001–2020. Based on data from MET Norway.

Svalbard: clear evenings on stays of 3 to 7 nights

How often a stay had at least one mostly clear evening, by the month it starts.

An evening counts as mostly clear when cloud covers a quarter of the sky or less at the 19:00 observation (20:00 in summer time), in MET Norway's records for Longyearbyen, 2001–2020. Cloudy weather often lasts for days, so we checked each stay night by night. The figures are rounded to the nearest 5%. They describe cloud only and say nothing about aurora. Based on data from MET Norway.

When to go to Svalbard for the northern lights

• October is cloudier than February and March. In October, 60% of 5-night stays had at least one mostly clear evening, and in November 50%.
• December and January are dark for most of the day. On average 21 h a day in December and 18 h in January are dark enough, and aurora can show around midday too.
• January to March have the clearest skies. In these months, 70–75% of 5-night stays had at least one mostly clear evening.
• In March the nights get shorter quickly. Only 3.6 h a day are dark enough on average, and the aurora season ends around 19 March.

Svalbard: 4 viewing spots

Only Longyearbyen can be reached without a car or a tour.

On Svalbard, the note under each spot says when you can go there only on a guided tour.

Distances and travel times are from Longyearbyen.

All 128 viewing spots in Northern Norway and Svalbard

Do you live near one of our spots? If it causes trouble for you or on the road, write to us at hello@aurorachaser.app and we will remove it.

Questions

What does the score mean?

Each spot gets a score from 0 to 100 for every hour. 60 or more is worth going out. Until it is dark enough for aurora, the page shows tonight's best hour, marked “Forecast”. “Our pick” is the spot with the highest score, or one that is quicker to reach from Longyearbyen when its score is within 5 points. When the highest score is below 25, that margin is a fifth of it. Within that margin, a town's dark spots you drive to come before its centre and airport.

Read more about how the score works.

When is the best time to see the northern lights in Svalbard?

In MET Norway's records, January to March had the clearest skies. See the monthly table.

What time of night can you see the northern lights in Svalbard?

Any time it is dark enough for aurora, and in the polar night even around midday. In the evening and at night the aurora is usually to the south, and around midday overhead or to the north.

How many nights should you stay in Svalbard to see the northern lights?

Plan 5 nights or more. In MET Norway's records, most 5-night stays that started between October and March (except November) had at least one mostly clear evening. Aurora must also be active, so no number of nights makes a sighting certain. See the table of stays.

What Kp index do you need in Svalbard?

Svalbard lies at about 75.3° geomagnetic latitude, north of the auroral oval at night, so Kp is a poor guide here. Darkness and clear sky matter most.

Is 2026–2027 still a good season for the northern lights in Svalbard?

Yes. The sun's 11-year cycle peaked in 2024–2025, and the Met Office says the years after a peak can often bring strong geomagnetic storms too. At these latitudes the aurora does not need a storm, so the solar cycle matters less here than further south.

Can you see the northern lights in Longyearbyen itself?

Yes, on stronger nights, though street lights hide fainter displays. Our spots in or near town are Longyearbyen and Svalbard Airport. For darker skies, guided tours go to Adventdalen and Camp Barentz.

Do you need a tour or a car in Svalbard?

Outside Longyearbyen you must carry something to scare off polar bears, and a rifle is recommended. To see aurora away from the town lights, go on a guided tour. See the spot table.

Can you see the northern lights during the polar night in Svalbard?

Yes, when the sky is clear. The sun stays below the horizon from about 27 October to 15 February, and in Longyearbyen it is dark around the clock from about 13 November to 29 January. Polar night dates for 23 towns.

Does the moon matter?

A bright moon hides faint aurora but barely dims a strong display.

How far ahead does the forecast go?

Tonight's forecast is hour by hour. For each of the next 14 nights, AuroraChaser gives your chance of seeing aurora at least once if you look during the dark hours. Any outlook further ahead is only a rough guide to aurora activity.

Last updated: 5 November 2026