Whitehorse, YT · magnetic latitude 63.3°
Northern lights in Whitehorse: tonight’s chance
Whitehorse sits in the dry lee of the coastal mountains, close enough to the oval that a calm night can still bring it over the Yukon River.
Tonight at Whitehorse, YT
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Reading the SWPC Kp forecast and the cloud forecast…
| Kp forecast during the dark hours | not yet forecast |
|---|---|
| Kp needed here | 1.4 |
| Cloud cover in the dark hours | loading |
| Dark sky (Sun 18° down) | 9:16 PM to 6:17 AM GMT-7 |
| Moon | 14% lit |
| Right now, OVATION (30 to 90 min) | loading or unavailable |
| Magnetic latitude (AACGM) | 63.3° |
Hour by hour, GMT-7
8 PM
Kp –
– ☁
No
9 PM
Kp –
– ☁
No
10 PM
Kp –
– ☁
No
11 PM
Kp –
– ☁
No
12 AM
Kp –
– ☁
No
1 AM
Kp –
– ☁
No
2 AM
Kp –
– ☁
No
3 AM
Kp –
– ☁
No
4 AM
Kp –
– ☁
No
5 AM
Kp –
– ☁
No
6 AM
Kp –
– ☁
No
7 AM
Kp –
– ☁
No
Rules checked · Built by Radif Partners · How the answer works
- Kp to see it from Whitehorse
- 1.4
- Storm level needed
- no storm
- Kp for aurora overhead
- 1.4
- Most clear dark hours
- December
From Whitehorse the northern lights need a planetary Kp of only about 1.4, well below any storm on the NOAA scale. The Yukon capital sits at 63.3 degrees magnetic latitude in the AACGM model, right where the edge of the oval rests on many ordinary nights, and at about Kp 1.4 it is overhead. Daylight is the limit: from May to August the sky never gets fully dark, and even in April the dark window shrinks to 2.2 hours on the 15th. In mid-December it lasts 12.6 hours, from 7:37 PM to 8:14 AM on the clock. NASA POWER cloud amounts run from 60% in March to 77% in June. By clear dark hours, December, January and February come first. The tool reads tonight's SWPC Kp blocks and MET Norway cloud cover for the town you type.
On the dry side of the mountains
Pacific storms that soak the Alaska Panhandle lose most of their moisture climbing the Coast Mountains and the St. Elias ranges, and Whitehorse, on the far side, gets what is left. The difference shows in the cloud averages: March in Whitehorse averages 60% cloud amount, while the clearest month in Juneau sits at 74%. That is not a desert sky, and summer and autumn are grey, but late winter here can stay clear for nights in a row once a cold air mass settles into the valley.
The town lies in the valley of the Yukon River, with ridges on both sides. Those ridges matter less than they would farther south, because at Kp 1.4 the aurora does not need a flat horizon: on most active nights it climbs well above the hills, and during a storm it can cover the zenith. A short drive out of the downtown glow onto a ridge road or a lakeshore is enough.
What Kp does this town need?
Kp to see aurora from here
1.4
| Magnetic latitude (AACGM) | 63.3° |
| Kp for aurora overhead | 1.4 |
| Storm level | no storm needed |
| How often that level comes | most active nights |
View line: the more southern of the SWPC oval rule and the NOAA G scale latitudes at each Kp.
Midnight on the clock is not midnight in the sky
The Yukon keeps its clocks well ahead of the sun. The practical effect is that darkness starts and ends later than visitors expect. In mid-January full darkness runs from 8:08 PM to 8:11 AM, and the most active part of the night, centered on magnetic midnight, often comes in the small hours. Waiting until after midnight, and staying until the first hint of blue, is a better plan than heading out at dinner time. The same shift works in your favor in spring: on April 15 the only fully dark stretch, 2.2 hours, begins only at 12:54 AM, so a late season trip still has a window if you are willing to stay up for it.
When the light comes back
Darkness disappears from May to August, and returns quickly in late August. By mid-September there are 5.9 dark hours, 9.2 by mid-October, though those months are among the cloudiest. March offers the clearest sky with 7.3 hours of darkness on the 15th, which makes it the strongest single choice for a trip. Winter nights in between are longer still, but the sky in December and January is cloudier, and the deep cold of a still night in the valley can drop well below what most visitors have packed for. A heated car with a view of the north is a perfectly good observatory here. For a city deeper in the auroral zone, see the Yellowknife page; across the border, the Fairbanks page.
Kp needed around Whitehorse
| Town | Magnetic latitude | Kp to see it | Kp overhead | Storm level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yellowknife | 68.5° | 0.0 | 0.0 | no storm |
| Whitehorse | 63.3° | 1.4 | 1.4 | no storm |
| Edmonton | 60.2° | 2.9 | 2.9 | no storm |
| Saskatoon | 59.8° | 3.1 | 3.1 | no storm |
| Winnipeg | 58.7° | 3.7 | 3.7 | no storm |
| Regina | 58.5° | 3.8 | 3.8 | no storm |
| Calgary | 57.7° | 4.2 | 4.2 | no storm |
| Quebec City | 54.4° | 5.8 | 5.8 | G2 (Moderate) |
| Vancouver | 54.3° | 5.8 | 5.8 | G2 (Moderate) |
| Ottawa | 53.7° | 6.1 | 6.1 | G2 (Moderate) |
| Montreal | 53.5° | 6.3 | 6.3 | G2 (Moderate) |
| Toronto | 52.5° | 6.5 | 6.8 | G2 (Moderate) |
| St. John's | 51.0° | 6.8 | 7.5 | G3 (Strong) |
| Halifax | 50.6° | 6.9 | 7.7 | G3 (Strong) |
Darkness and clouds by month in Whitehorse
| Month | Dark hours | Dark sky, 15th | Mean cloud | Clear dark hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 12.0 h | 8:08 PM to 8:11 AM | 67% | 4.0 h |
| February | 10.0 h | 9:13 PM to 7:14 AM | 61% | 3.9 h |
| March | 7.3 h | 10:29 PM to 5:47 AM | 60% | 2.9 h |
| April | 2.2 h | 12:54 AM to 3:05 AM | 67% | 0.7 h |
| May | none | – | 71% | 0.0 h |
| June | none | – | 77% | 0.0 h |
| July | none | – | 74% | 0.0 h |
| August | none | – | 73% | 0.0 h |
| September | 5.9 h | 10:58 PM to 4:52 AM | 74% | 1.5 h |
| October | 9.2 h | 9:11 PM to 6:21 AM | 77% | 2.1 h |
| November | 11.5 h | 7:59 PM to 7:30 AM | 74% | 3.0 h |
| December | 12.6 h | 7:37 PM to 8:14 AM | 68% | 4.0 h |