Aurora overlay

Space weather · right now

Will the aurora be visible from southern UK tonight? This page answers in plain English at the top, then shows the four numbers that drive the answer (Kp, Bz, solar wind, oval edge). Aurora from southern UK is rare — the magnetic disturbance has to push the auroral oval well south of Scotland before anything shows for us.

Elevated · northern horizon onlyUpdated 0s ago

Active but below G1 storm level. Maybe something on a Scottish horizon with a camera; nothing for southern UK.

Kp3.0below_G1

Bz · IMF-5.3nT · south ✓

Solar wind582km/s · 0.1 p/cm³

Oval edge47°extreme_expansion

Geomagnetic state

Storm level

moderate

Phase

initial_phase

Trend

stable

Peak Kp · 24h

4.0

OVATION · Scotland

Scotland visible

AuroraWatch

green

Oval intensity · max

Scotland intensity

Outlook

quiet

Predicted max Kp

—

Predicted min Dst

-30 nT

How to read this

Kp — planetary geomagnetic index 0–9. For southern UK: Kp ≥ 7 (G3) is the realistic floor for horizon glow, Kp ≥ 8 (G4) for anything overhead. Scotland starts seeing it at Kp ≥ 5 — treat Scottish visibility as our early warning.
Bz (IMF) — the magnetic field direction of the solar wind. Southward (negative) for 30+ minutes is what actually drives the oval south. Northward Bz = little happens regardless of wind speed.
Solar wind — 400 km/s is nominal, 600+ is fast, 800+ is storm-grade. Density and speed together set the pressure on the magnetosphere.
Oval edge — the equatorward boundary of the aurora oval in degrees north. 60°N puts Scotland in; 55°N the north of England; southern UK needs ≤ 52°N which is proper storm territory.

Members see a couple of extra fields here (coupling proxy and how long Bz has been pointed south) plus alert subscriptions for storm-grade events. Sign in or join to enable them.