The chance of seeing the northern lights over Germany is currently increasing again. Can the Northern Lights still be discovered today?
October 4, 2024 at 10:46 amBerlin
An article by
Daniel Steiger
Northern lights over Canada in May 2024. In the coming nights, northern lights could also be seen in Germany.
Ethan Cairns/The Canadian Press/AP/dpa
According to the NASA emitted a particularly powerful flare that peaked at 8:18 a.m. ET on October 3, 2024. This currently increases the chance of sightings of the northern lights. You can Northern Lights today, October 4th, and watch over the next few nights? And if so, when and where? What are the causes of the fascinating celestial spectacle?
By the way, there are professional tips for taking the best photos of the northern lights in this extra article.
Northern lights in Germany: Where can you see them today?
In various regions of Germany there is now and then the opportunity to observe the northern lights. At such moments, the night sky shines in impressive colors such as green, violet, yellow and red. The lights are often clearly visible, especially in rural areas. But the question arises: Can Northern Lights enthusiasts in Germany currently see the fascinating lights in the sky? And what is the forecast for the coming nights?
According to the US Environmental Protection Agency NOAA can the probability that Northern lights over Germany in the coming nights can be seen, are assessed as increased. The northern lights specialists from polarlicht-vorhersage.de currently describe the probability as low. However, that could change in the next few hours. One of the strongest solar flares in recent years occurred on October 3rd. From October 5th at the latest you can powerful geomagnetic storm appear. This means that visible northern lights cannot be ruled out in Germany either!
Northern Lights forecast: When can they be seen?
The basic rule for sighting the northern lights over Germany is: the stronger the solar storms, the better the visibility in southern latitudes, explained a spokesman for the German Research Center for Geosciences (GFZ). A measure of the strength of a solar storm is Kp-Index. A Kp index between 0 and 3 indicates low solar activity, with a Kp value of 9 there would be northern lights even over the middle of Germany – for example Dresden or Kassel. In very rare cases, these can also be seen from the Alpine region. The prerequisite for this is clear skies and a clear view to the north. At the beginning of November 2023, northern lights were spotted over central Germany. At that time, the Kp index reached a fairly high value of 7. The value of 6 was exceeded more than 20 times last year. Values beyond 8 were reached three times, according to the GFZ spokesman. The 9 did not yet exist on the Kp index in 2023. For the coming nights says NOAA maximum HP values of 6.67 in advance. Specifically, the KP value for Saturday night is a maximum of 6.00 and for Sunday night it is currently a maximum of 6.67.
Seeing the Northern Lights: This is what the weather will be like at night
If you want to observe the northern lights, you need the appropriate weather conditions. According to the German Weather Service (DWD), these are for the Saturday night, from October 4th. on October 5th, 2024, unfavorable in some regions. Accordingly, the DWD experts expect clouds and rain, especially in the southeast. But patches of clouds can also be expected in the rest of the country, which are only expected to clear up occasionally. The observation weather is getting better according to DWD on Sunday night. At first it will often be clear or slightly cloudy, and there will also be loosening or clearing up in the east and southeast. Only later in the night and the next morning did some dense fog and high fog appear. More clouds would then gather again in the extreme west and southwest.
Northern lights currently: The best time for northern lights over Germany
Some Northern Lights photographers recommend the first half of the night as the best viewing time on their websites. The most important thing is that it is as dark as possible. The observation time should therefore be far away from sunrise and sunset. In Central Germany the sun sets today around 6:30 p.m. Then from around 10 p.m. the chance of seeing the northern lights in the evening sky increases. According to US experts, the best chances on the night of October 4th to 5th are after midnight. The following night, highs of 6.67 are expected between 9 p.m. and midnight and 3 a.m. and 6 a.m. Northern lights watchers should choose a place that is as dark as possible to observe. In brightly lit cities such as Hamburg or Berlin, a sighting is unlikely.
