USA · Aurora borealis
Is the aurora visible in Soldotna tonight?
Right now
Wait for dark.
Kp is 0.0. Soldotna needs Kp 2+ for the oval overhead — right now it’s low on the northern horizon.
Tonight's peak is forecast around Kp 5.0 (Minor storm). The forecast still depends on darkness, cloud and the moon at your exact spot.
Reliable about 30 minutes ahead — cloud decides the rest.
Soldotna sits right under the auroral oval — it needs roughly Kp 2+ for the northern lights to come into view. Here's tonight's live space weather and how to plan around it.
Come back at 09:29 PM — that’s when the sky goes dark and the aurora could show.
Add a reminderHow to see the aurora from Soldotna
Face north and find a clear, low horizon in that direction. Everything else — dark skies, adapted eyes, the camera trick — is the same anywhere on Earth, so it lives in the how to photograph the aurora guide.
When can you see the northern lights in Soldotna?
Aurora season in Soldotna runs roughly September – March. Here the months that pay off are March, April, and January — the table below shows why. See the full best time to see the aurora guide for the season in detail.
Soldotna by the numbers
Between Sep 1, 2025 and Aug 31, 2026, Soldotna had 339 nights dark enough for the aurora, and the planetary Kp reached the Kp 2+ this place needs on 294 of them. Averaged over 2015–2024 and this location's cloud cover, that works out to about 109 aurora-possible nights a year, most of them in March, April, and January.
| Month | Dark hours per night | Dark nights | Average cloud cover | Aurora-possible nights |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 15.5 h | 31 | 67% | 10 |
| February | 13.3 h | 28 | 68% | 10 |
| March | 10.5 h | 31 | 61% | 14 |
| April | 7.8 h | 30 | 66% | 11 |
| May | 4.3 h | 31 | 72% | 9 |
| June | 0 | 6 | 67% | 2 |
| July | 2.8 h | 28 | 70% | 7 |
| August | 6.5 h | 31 | 68% | 11 |
| September | 9.5 h | 30 | 70% | 10 |
| October | 12.3 h | 31 | 69% | 10 |
| November | 14.8 h | 30 | 67% | 10 |
| December | 16 h | 31 | 79% | 6 |
Sources: the sun's geometry (dark = at least 6° below the horizon), GFZ Potsdam's Kp index 2015–2024 (CC BY 4.0), ERA5 cloud cover via Open-Meteo (the table shows the monthly mean; the estimate counts days that were not overcast). An estimate for comparing places and months, not a forecast — how we estimate this.
Plan the trip
Aurora tours & stays near Soldotna
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Aurora cabins & lodges
Cabins, lodges and aurora-view stays near Soldotna — settle in and watch the lights.
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Rent a car to chase clear skies
Self-drive to dark-sky spots away from town glow. Compare every local supplier.
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Cover the trip
Travel medical cover for a trip to Soldotna — remote, cold and weather-dependent — from a few dollars a day.
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