Northern Lights Forecast: USA Tonight

Fairbanks: Fairbanks sits close enough to the pole that aurora shows up on most clear nights, even during quiet solar periods. Interior Alaska's dry, often cloudless winter sky makes it one of the most reliable aurora viewing spots in the world.

Anchorage: Anchorage is far enough south that city light and coastal cloud cover cut into visibility more than in Fairbanks, but frequent activity still puts aurora overhead on many clear nights. Get away from downtown for the best view.

Utqiagvik: This is the northernmost city on the list, well inside the Arctic Circle. Aurora is overhead on nearly every clear night through the winter, and the long polar darkness gives extended viewing hours.

Duluth, MN: Lake Superior's northern shore gives a dark, open horizon. Kp 5 storms show up reliably here, and Duluth sits far enough from any major city that light pollution isn't much of an issue.

Marquette, MI: Michigan's Upper Peninsula sits at a similar latitude to Duluth, and it takes about the same Kp 5 threshold. Marquette's shoreline along Lake Superior gives an unobstructed northern view.

Bismarck, ND: Flat prairie terrain means nothing blocks the horizon once Kp reaches 5. Bismarck's small size keeps light pollution low compared to larger regional cities.

Fargo, ND: Similar latitude and threshold to Bismarck. Fargo's flat surroundings mean the main obstacle is finding a spot outside the city limits, not terrain.

Billings, MT: Southern Montana still catches Kp 5 storms regularly. The Rimrocks bluffs north of downtown can block a low horizon, so a spot south or east of the city often works better.

Helena, MT: Helena sits in a mountain valley, so the surrounding peaks can cut off a low horizon in some directions. Get up out of the valley floor when a Kp 5 storm hits for a clearer shot.

Minneapolis, MN: The Twin Cities' light dome is significant, so anything below Kp 6 is a tough ask from downtown. Head north of the metro for a real chance.

Green Bay, WI: Similar threshold to Minneapolis, Kp 6. Lake Michigan's northern shore gives a clearer view than most inland Wisconsin locations.

Chicago, IL: Chicago's light dome is one of the largest in the Midwest, so Kp 6 is closer to a minimum than a guarantee downtown. Distance from the city matters more than direction here.

Omaha, NE: Flat Nebraska terrain means the horizon isn't the problem, the city's own lights are. Get well outside Omaha for a real look once Kp hits 6.

Indianapolis, IN: This far south and inland, it takes Kp 7 to put on a real show. Central Indiana's flat terrain at least means nothing blocks the horizon when it happens.

Kansas City, MO: Similar Kp 7 threshold to Indianapolis. Kansas City straddles two states, so light pollution options vary quite a bit depending which side of the metro you're on.

St. Louis, MO: Southern Missouri needs Kp 7 to show anything. St. Louis's downtown light dome is significant, so distance from the Arch matters as much as the storm strength.

Denver, CO: The Front Range gives Denver a genuine mountain horizon to the west, but you want to look north, where the terrain is flatter. It takes Kp 7 to show up this far south.

Salt Lake City, UT: The Wasatch Mountains block a low horizon to the east, so look north over the lake instead. Salt Lake sits far enough north that Kp 6 is a realistic threshold.

Burlington, VT: Lake Champlain gives an open western horizon, but for aurora you want to look north. Vermont's rural stretches outside Burlington keep light pollution manageable, and it takes Kp 6 to see much.

Portland, ME: Coastal Maine has less competing light than most Northeast cities its size. Kp 6 is the usual bar, and the ocean horizon to the east isn't the direction you're watching anyway.

Buffalo, NY: Lake Erie's shoreline gives a clear view once Kp reaches 6, though lake-effect cloud cover is often the bigger obstacle than the geomagnetic conditions themselves.

Dallas, TX: This far south, only the strongest storms on record reach Dallas, Kp 8 or 9. These events happen a handful of times per solar cycle, not per year.

Austin, TX: Central Texas is near the southern edge of where aurora has ever been documented in modern records. It takes an extreme Kp 8 or 9 storm, genuinely rare events.

Atlanta, GA: Georgia has recorded aurora sightings only during the most extreme geomagnetic storms on record, Kp 8 or 9. Don't expect this on a typical storm night.

Los Angeles, CA: Southern California is about as far from a realistic aurora sighting as the continental US gets. It would take a Kp 8 or 9 storm, plus getting well outside the city's massive light dome, to have any shot at all.