Solar Ruler
Your guide to the Northern and Southern Lights (“Aurora”) — live tracking, 48-hour forecasts, dark sky finder, solar weather, cams, guides, and more
See where the aurora is right now and where it's headed over the next 48 hours. The green glow on the globe shows the aurora oval in real time, and the forecast slider lets you scrub ahead to plan your viewing night. Cloud cover from NASA satellite imagery overlays the globe so you can check whether your sky will be clear. Share your location to see a personalized aurora outlook, find nearby dark sky viewing spots, and get directions to safe, poleward locations away from city lights.
Viewing Spot Etiquette & Safety
Whether you're heading to a state park, a rest area, or a Park & Ride lot for some dark sky viewing, a few courtesies go a long way toward keeping these spots welcoming for everyone.
Respect the darkness. If others are nearby, keep your headlights and phone screens off or dimmed. White light destroys night vision that takes 20–30 minutes to rebuild. Use a red-filtered flashlight or your phone's red/night mode if you need light. When you arrive, park facing away from the viewing area so you don't blast others with headlights when you leave.
Be mindful of your surroundings. State parks and rest areas are shared spaces. Keep noise low, especially late at night. If you're at a campground, remember that others may be sleeping. At Park & Ride lots, stay in or near your vehicle and don't block transit infrastructure. Never park on private property or block access roads.
Stay safe. Tell someone where you're going and when you expect to return. Bring warm layers, a charged phone, a full tank of gas, and water. Watch for wildlife on rural roads — deer and moose are most active at night. If conditions feel unsafe or a location is closed, trust your instincts and try another spot.
Leave no trace. Pack out everything you bring in. If you set up a chair or tripod, take it with you. Leave the spot cleaner than you found it so the next aurora chaser has the same great experience. These small acts of respect keep dark sky locations open and welcoming for the entire community.
Important — Please Read
While we do our best to direct you to public locations, mapping data can occasionally be inaccurate. If a suggested location turns out to be a private residence, business, or restricted area, please disregard the direction immediately, do not stop or loiter, and move on to the next spot. Always verify that you are on public land or in a public facility before setting up to view.
How to use Solar Ruler
1. Rotate the globe with your mouse or finger to explore different regions of Earth. Scroll or pinch to zoom in.
2. The green band around the poles shows where the aurora is visible, based on NOAA's OVATION model. Brighter clusters mean stronger activity.
3. Use the 48-hour forecast slider to see where the aurora is predicted to appear over the next two days. The oval and day/night boundary update as you scrub through time.
4. Share your location to see an orange marker on the globe, a personalized aurora outlook for tonight, and nearby dark sky viewing spots with directions.
What the aurora colors mean here
Solar Ruler simplifies the complex OVATION data into a glowing green belt. Brighter, denser clusters of points represent stronger auroral activity. This model describes where the aurora is most likely to appear, but local conditions like clouds, city lights, and the brightness of the Moon still affect what you can actually see with your eyes. Below, you can use the link to NOAA and see Earth in Real Time to check current cloud cover over your area.
Tips for seeing the aurora
· Get away from city lights and find a dark horizon to the north (or south if you're in the Southern Hemisphere).
· Give your eyes at least 20–30 minutes to adjust to the dark.
· Check the forecast for clear skies – even a strong aurora can be hidden by clouds.
· Use Solar Ruler together with local aurora alerts and space weather reports for the best chances of catching a display.
Predicting the Aurora: How the 48-Hour Forecast Slider Works
Solar Ruler's 48-hour forecast slider is one of the most powerful features on this page. It lets you look ahead in time and see where the aurora is predicted to appear over the next two days, based on NOAA's official 3-day geomagnetic forecast model. Instead of simply showing you what the aurora looks like right now, the slider lets you plan ahead — so you can decide whether tonight, tomorrow night, or the night after offers the best chance of catching the lights.
When you drag the slider forward in time, the globe updates to show an estimated aurora oval for that future moment. The aurora band will expand toward the equator when higher Kp values are forecast, and contract toward the poles during quieter periods. The day-night boundary on the globe also shifts to reflect where darkness will fall at the selected time, so you can see at a glance whether your location will be on the night side of Earth when the aurora is expected to peak.
The predicted Kp index is displayed alongside the slider, giving you a concrete number to work with. As a rule of thumb, each increase of one Kp unit pushes the visible aurora boundary roughly three degrees of latitude closer to the equator. At Kp 3, the aurora is typically visible above 60° latitude — places like Fairbanks, Tromsø, and Reykjavik. At Kp 5, the boundary drops to around 55°, bringing it into view from southern Canada, Scotland, and Scandinavia. At Kp 7 and above, mid-latitude cities like Minneapolis, Seattle, and London may see aurora on the northern horizon.
How to Read the Globe and Plan Your Aurora Night
Start by sharing your location so the orange marker appears on the globe. This immediately shows you how close you are to the aurora oval. If the green glow overlaps your marker, conditions are favorable and you should head outside as soon as the sky is dark and clear. If there is a gap between the green band and your marker, use the forecast slider to check whether the oval is expected to expand toward you in the coming hours.
The Kp index panels at the top of the page give you two critical numbers: the current Kp (what is happening right now) and tonight's forecast Kp (the predicted peak between 9 PM and 2 AM in your local time). If tonight's forecast is higher than the current value, conditions are expected to improve — a good reason to stay up late. If it is lower, the best window may have already passed, or you might want to check what tomorrow night looks like by sliding further ahead.
Cloud cover is the other critical factor. Toggle the NASA MODIS satellite cloud layer on the globe to see where skies are clear right now. Even a strong Kp 7 storm will be invisible behind overcast skies. When planning a few hours ahead, pair Solar Ruler with a local weather forecast to estimate whether cloud cover will break in time. Many experienced aurora chasers keep the globe open on their phone and drive to clear sky pockets when the Kp is high but their home location is cloudy.
Your personalized “Tonight's Aurora Outlook” section above the slider translates all of this data into plain language. It considers your exact latitude, the forecast Kp, and the minimum geomagnetic activity needed to bring the aurora to your sky. If it says you're “in for a treat,” it means the predicted Kp significantly exceeds the threshold for your location — get outside. If it says chances are slim, the slider can help you scout the next 48 hours for a better window.
Understanding Aurora Forecasts and Their Limits
Aurora forecasting has come a long way, but it is still an evolving science. NOAA's geomagnetic forecast model predicts Kp values in three-hour blocks up to three days ahead. These predictions are based on observed solar wind conditions at the L1 point — a satellite parked 1.5 million kilometers sunward of Earth — combined with models of how Earth's magnetosphere responds to incoming solar particles. The closer the forecast block is to the present time, the more accurate it tends to be. Predictions more than 24 hours out carry greater uncertainty because they depend on solar wind that hasn't been directly measured yet.
One important nuance is that geomagnetic substorms can spike the Kp index well above the forecast for brief periods. A substorm occurs when the magnetosphere releases built-up energy in a sudden burst, sending particles cascading down magnetic field lines and creating a brief but intense aurora display. These substorms are difficult to predict more than an hour or two in advance, which means that even on a “quiet” forecast night, a surprise substorm could light up the sky. If you see the Kp climbing unexpectedly on the live panel, head outside — it might only last 30 to 60 minutes.
Conversely, a high Kp forecast does not guarantee a dramatic visual display. The aurora could peak while your location is still in daylight, or cloud cover could block the view entirely. The best strategy is to treat the forecast as a probability guide: higher Kp means a higher chance, not a certainty. Combine Solar Ruler's forecast slider with cloud cover data, moon phase information from our Moon Phase page, and the Solar Weather dashboard to build the most complete picture possible before you commit to an aurora chase.
Privacy, ads, and data usage
Solar Ruler uses a small amount of technical data to operate: your browser, screen size, and basic analytics about how the site is used. If you grant location permission, your approximate coordinates are stored only in this browser to place the orange marker on the globe. They are not sent to our servers.
Thank you for supporting Solar Ruler! This site is funded by non-intrusive ads served via Google AdSense. No personal data is shared with advertisers. We are adding new features and improvements over time, so please check back for updates.
What Makes Solar Ruler Different?
- Built on NOAA's real-time OVATION auroral model for accurate visibility estimates.
- Interactive 3D globe lets you explore aurora strength anywhere on Earth instantly.
- Total instant Aurora North and South visibility at a glance, no complex charts or jargon.
- Less "data clutter" - focused on what matters for aurora watchers, not overwhelming technical details.
Aurora data updates regularly throughout the day as NOAA processes new solar wind readings.