Alberta Aurora Forecast
Where the northern lights may be visible right now.
Tonight's aurora forecast for Alberta: 1/10 in Fort McMurray. Kp 1.7 expected around 11:31 p.m., putting it overhead, showers forecast, moon sets 1:16 a.m. This data may be delayed. Last updated August 23, 2026 at 12:01 a.m. — about 16 hours ago. Check the source directly before relying on it.
Aurora tonight
1/10 in Fort McMurray — Unlikely
Kp 1.7 expected around 11:31 p.m., putting it overhead, showers forecast, moon sets 1:16 a.m.
- Fort McMurray1/10Unlikely
Kp 1.7 expected around 11:31 p.m., putting it overhead, showers forecast, moon sets 1:16 a.m.
Best window 1:16 a.m. – 3:01 a.m.
- Grande Prairie1/10Unlikely
Kp 1.7 expected around 11:44 p.m., putting it low on the northern horizon, chance of showers forecast, moon sets 2:02 a.m.
Best window 2:14 a.m. – 3:14 a.m.
- Edmonton1/10Unlikely
Kp 1.7 expected around 11:08 p.m., putting it low on the northern horizon, showers or thunderstorms forecast, moon sets 1:52 a.m.
Best window 1:53 a.m. – 3:08 a.m.
- Red Deer0/10Nothing tonight
Kp 1.7 expected around 10:59 p.m., putting it just on the northern horizon, if at all, showers or thunderstorms forecast, moon sets 2:03 a.m.
Best window 2:14 a.m. – 3:14 a.m.
- Banff0/10Nothing tonight
Kp 1.7 expected around 10:58 p.m., putting it just on the northern horizon, if at all, showers or thunderstorms forecast, moon sets 2:18 a.m.
Best window 2:28 a.m. – 3:13 a.m.
- Calgary0/10Nothing tonight
Kp 1.7 expected around 10:51 p.m., putting it just on the northern horizon, if at all, chance of showers forecast, moon sets 2:13 a.m.
Best window 2:21 a.m. – 3:06 a.m.
- Medicine Hat0/10Nothing tonight
Kp 1.7 expected around 10:31 p.m., putting it just on the northern horizon, if at all, chance of showers forecast, moon sets 2:05 a.m.
Best window 2:16 a.m. – 3:01 a.m.
- Lethbridge0/10Nothing tonight
Kp 1.7 expected around 10:38 p.m., putting it just on the northern horizon, if at all, chance of showers forecast, moon sets 2:16 a.m.
Best window 2:23 a.m. – 3:08 a.m.
How this score is worked out
Four things decide it, in this order. How far south the aurora reaches, from NOAA's forecast planetary K-index for the hours you'd actually be outside — Alberta sits about six degrees further north magnetically than it does on a map, which is why the northern lights reach here as often as they do. Whether it gets dark — between May and late July the sun never drops far enough below the horizon in central Alberta for the sky to go properly black, and no amount of geomagnetic activity fixes that. Cloud, from Environment Canada's overnight forecast for each region. The moon, which washes out a faint display and barely affects a bright one.
The calculation is fixed and public — the same inputs always give the same score, and no AI is involved in working it out or in wording it. NOAA currently measures 27 GW of power in the northern auroral zone. That figure is shown as corroboration only: unlike the K-index it has no published relationship to how far south the aurora is visible, so it does not enter the score.
Get away from town lights and look north. Quiet nights are the norm, and the aurora is genuinely unpredictable — a forecast is a probability, not a promise.
Space weather from the NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center; cloud from Environment and Climate Change Canada. Full Alberta forecast →
Live aurora (northern lights) probability over Alberta from NOAA's OVATION model, drawn as glowing bands of the auroral oval and refreshed about every five minutes. Deeper, pinker areas mean a better chance of a visible show; green is a faint chance. Best seen from dark, northern skies on a clear night — and quiet nights show little or nothing, which is normal.
Data from NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center. Always confirm with official sources before travelling.