About Aurora Live Map
Aurora Live Map shows where the northern and southern lights are right now. It draws NOAA's aurora model on a live 3D globe, adds the three-day geomagnetic outlook and the real-time solar wind, and turns them into a forecast for 48 cities, from Fairbanks and Tromsø to Seattle, Edinburgh and Queenstown.
Where the data comes from
- Aurora model, Kp index and forecast, solar wind: NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center (OVATION aurora model, planetary K-index, real-time solar wind). Public domain.
- Cloud cover on the globe: infrared imagery from the GOES-East, GOES-West, Himawari and VIIRS satellites, served by NASA's Global Imagery Browse Services (GIBS).
- Night lights: NASA Black Marble (VIIRS). Cloud forecasts for U.S. cities: National Weather Service. Public domain.
- Coastlines: Natural Earth, public domain.
The page reads NOAA's feeds directly and refreshes every five minutes. Our server also keeps a copy up to date, so the map still works when a feed is briefly unreachable.
What this site is not
Aurora Live Map is an independent project. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by NOAA, NASA or the National Weather Service. Aurora forecasts are probabilities: clouds, moonlight and city light decide what you actually see. Some views, such as the storm preview and curtain shapes, are illustrations and are labeled that way.
Contact
Questions, corrections or a city you would like added: hello@auroralivemap.com