Where to See the Northern Lights in the US

Only Alaska makes the aurora close to routine. Everywhere else, you're waiting for a storm — and for a clear sky to go with it. Get both, and places like Minnesota's North Shore and Michigan's Upper Peninsula are among the best in the Lower 48 to see them.

Don't write this winter off. The sun's 11-year cycle most likely peaked in October 2024, and the years after a peak have a habit of producing big storms — a severe one on Nov. 11, 2025, put the lights over Texas and Florida. Activity is falling. The big storms haven't stopped.

In the Lower 48, the aurora usually sits low on the northern horizon, and it takes a geomagnetic storm to lift it into view. Forecasters rate that activity on the Kp scale, from 0 to 9. Along the Canadian border, a Kp of 4 or 5 is often enough, while Portland, Maine, needs something closer to 7. A camera, even a phone, picks up color that the eye reads as a pale glow.

Darkness matters as much as the storm. Look between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m., away from town lights, with a clear view to the north — and plan on several nights, not one. The weeks around the equinoxes have a reputation for stronger activity, and the long nights from October to March give you the most hours to wait.

This guide covers five regions, what each one does best and how to plan around it, plus the forecasts, apps and camera settings that turn a lucky night into a planned one. Park service pages, local tourism advice and creator videos are in the bundle below.

Fairbanks and Interior Alaska

Fairbanks sits under the auroral oval — the ring of activity that circles the magnetic pole — so you don't need a storm to see the lights there. Explore Fairbanks puts the season at Aug. 21 to April 21 and says that when the sky is clear and dark, the aurora shows on about four nights out of five. Low rainfall and an inland location keep those clear nights coming, and the bureau says visitors who stay three nights or more and go out late each evening have a better than 90% chance of a sighting.

Most visitors leave the city glow behind. Creamer's Field, Chena Lake Recreation Area and Cleary Summit are the usual stops close to town — each a short drive from downtown hotels. Chena Hot Springs Resort, about 60 miles from Fairbanks, runs an aurora tour that climbs in an enclosed tracked vehicle to Charlie Dome, where heated yurts and hot drinks wait under open sky. The springs come after.

For something wilder, Northern Alaska Tour Company's Coldfoot day trip flies north to the Brooks Range and drives back on the Dalton Highway, a 14- to 15-hour outing priced from $739 to $999 per person for the 2026-27 season. The travel channel Wandering the World filmed a guided Fairbanks tour in March 2026 that shows what a night out is like.

Denali is a longer shot. The park sits south of the best aurora zone, and the park service says the country north of it, toward Fairbanks, has better odds than the Anchorage side. While you're up there, pair the trip with other Alaska experiences, and see how it stacks up against the best places to see the northern lights worldwide.

When is the best time to see the northern lights in Fairbanks? Aug. 21 to April 21 is the aurora season in Fairbanks. September and March bring milder nights, December and January the longest darkness, and the strongest displays usually come between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m.

How many nights should you stay in Fairbanks for the aurora? At least three. Explore Fairbanks says visitors who stay three nights or more and go out late each evening have a better than 90% chance of seeing the northern lights, and four or five nights is safer still.

Is Chena Hot Springs good for seeing the northern lights? Yes. Chena Hot Springs sits in dark country about 60 miles from Fairbanks, far from city light. Its aurora tour climbs to Charlie Dome for wide views, and guests can watch from the outdoor springs between sessions.

Northern Minnesota and Voyageurs

Voyageurs National Park sits on the Canadian border — a park of lakes, islands and boat-in campsites that became an International Dark Sky Park in 2020. National Geographic has made the case for it as the best place in the Lower 48 to see the aurora, which the Ojibwe call Wawatay. The park service names three viewing spots, all reached by road: the Ash River Visitor Center grounds, the Meadwood Road Day Use Area and the upper parking lot at the Rainy Lake Visitor Center, the one visitor center open in winter, Friday through Monday.

North of Lake Superior, the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness was named a Dark Sky Sanctuary the same year, and Ely is its busiest gateway. Most of its visitors come between May and September — winter nights are quiet. GoNOMAD suggests watching from the south shore of a lake north of town, with open water or ice to the north and nothing to block the view. Jim Brandenburg, the late nature photographer who was based near Ely, left a time-lapse of the lights rolling over the Boundary Waters that shows what a clear night here can look like.

Cook County — the North Shore around Grand Marais and the Gunflint Trail — has made dark skies its calling card. Visit Cook County says a Kp of 4 or higher is usually enough there, recommends the My Aurora Forecast & Alerts app, and offers viewing routes mapped with photographer Bryan Hansel. Its Dark Sky Festival takes place the second weekend of December, which falls on Dec. 10 to 12 this year.

Where is the best place to see the northern lights in Minnesota? Voyageurs National Park. Its Ash River Visitor Center grounds, Meadwood Road Day Use Area and Rainy Lake Visitor Center lot all face open northern sky, and the Boundary Waters around Ely and Cook County on the North Shore are close behind.

Can you reach the Voyageurs viewing spots in winter? Yes, by road. Voyageurs National Park has no entrance fee, and the Rainy Lake Visitor Center is open Friday through Monday in winter. Snow tires and a full tank are wise on the drive up to the border.

What Kp do you need to see the aurora in northern Minnesota? A Kp of 4 or higher is usually enough to see the aurora in northern Minnesota, according to Visit Cook County. At 6 or more, the display can climb well above the horizon.

Michigan's Upper Peninsula

Lake Superior gives the Upper Peninsula something few places have — a long shoreline that faces north, with nothing but water to the horizon. UP Travel says the best viewing runs from August to April and points to Brockway Mountain and the Keweenaw Dark Sky Park near Copper Harbor, the M-28 turnouts between Munising and Marquette, and Breakers Beach near Houghton. The Keweenaw sits at about 47 degrees north — level with the top of Maine.

Marquette is the easiest base. Travel Marquette's aurora tips come from photographer Shawn Malone, who recommends Lake Superior's south shore and warm hands and feet. The city's own lookouts include Sugarloaf Mountain, McCarty's Cove and Wetmore Landing. The YouTube channel TourDaYooP turned the Aug. 11, 2024, storm over the Keweenaw into a time-lapse that shows glows, arcs, rays and a corona overhead, a good primer on what a big night looks like.

At the eastern end, Capture the Atlas puts Whitefish Point, near Tahquamenon Falls, first on its Michigan list because its beach faces north across open Lake Superior. Just south of the Mackinac Bridge, in the Lower Peninsula, the Headlands International Dark Sky Park outside Mackinaw City is the better-known name, but it faces Lake Michigan, and Capture the Atlas suggests nearby Wilderness State Park for a clearer view. For daytime plans around the lakes, see these things to do on the Great Lakes.

Where are the best places to see the northern lights in the Upper Peninsula? Brockway Mountain near Copper Harbor, the M-28 turnouts between Munising and Marquette, and Whitefish Point. All three look north over open Lake Superior, with no town glow on the horizon.

What months are best for the northern lights in Michigan? August to April, according to UP Travel. Winter brings the longest nights for the northern lights in Michigan, while late summer and fall are milder for long waits on the Lake Superior shore.

Is the Headlands Dark Sky Park good for the aurora? For stars, yes. For the aurora, less so: the Headlands shoreline faces Lake Michigan, and Capture the Atlas says it mostly points the wrong way, suggesting nearby Wilderness State Park instead.

Maine: Aroostook, Katahdin and Acadia

Maine has the darkest skies in the Northeast, and the farther north you go, the smaller the storm you need. Maine.com, which tracks the NOAA forecast, breaks it down: a Kp of 5 reaches Aroostook County, a Kp of 6 reaches the middle of the state around Moosehead Lake and Baxter State Park, and Portland needs a 7. Visit Aroostook says the best time of night is usually around midnight and points to Aroostook State Park and the North Maine Woods.

Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument became an International Dark Sky Sanctuary in 2020, the first dark-sky place of any kind in New England. Its 87,000 acres have no commercial power — no grid, no streetlights — so the horizon stays black in every direction. Farther west, the Far Reach Observatory near Greenville sits in the Moosehead Lake region's darkest zone, and the amateur astronomer who hosts it told a Bangor TV station that the sky there shows thousands of stars that Bangor and Portland can't.

Acadia is the easiest to reach — and in summer, the most crowded. The park service lists Jordan Pond among its stargazing spots, and photographer Benjamin Williamson caught a bright display over the pond during the October 2024 storm. Winter visitors should know that most of the Park Loop Road closes to cars from Dec. 1 to April 14, and the Schoodic Peninsula offers a quieter northern horizon. For more dark-sky trips, see the best places for stargazing.

Where can you see the northern lights in Maine? Aroostook County, at the top of the state, gives Maine its best odds for the northern lights, followed by Katahdin Woods and Waters and the Moosehead Lake region. Acadia works on stronger nights with a clear view north.

What Kp do you need to see the aurora in Maine? Kp 5 for Aroostook County, Maine, about 6 for the middle of the state and 7 or higher for Portland. A Kp 7 storm comes on about a dozen days a year on average, and fewer as the sun quiets.

Is Acadia open for aurora viewing in winter? Yes, though most of the Park Loop Road closes to cars from Dec. 1 to April 14. Jordan Pond and the Schoodic Peninsula remain good choices for aurora watching on clear winter nights in Acadia.

Montana and North Dakota

Glacier National Park and Canada's Waterton Lakes share a single International Dark Sky Park certification, made final in 2021. Outside suggests looking north from Lake McDonald, and in winter Going-to-the-Sun Road is plowed from West Glacier to Lake McDonald Lodge, weather permitting. National Geographic adds Kintla Lake and Apgar inside the park — and warns that winter nights in Montana can fall to minus 40. YouTube creator Eric Pfohl drove to Glacier after the May 2024 aurora alert and filmed the chase.

Northwest Montana around the park has dark skies to spare, and the Flathead Beacon points to the nearby Lost Trail National Wildlife Refuge, a Dark Sky Sanctuary, as another place to watch. Across the plains, National Geographic's Montana picks include Brush Lake State Park in the far northeast and Nelson Reservoir near Malta, where the horizon runs flat for miles.

North Dakota trades mountains for badlands — eroded buttes and grassland where the sky takes up most of the view. Theodore Roosevelt National Park sits more than 30 miles from the nearest large city, and the park service suggests driving to plateau viewpoints in either unit. In Medora, the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library runs a dark-sky campus with a nearly mile-long boardwalk and says September and October are the best aurora months there, with a Kp of about 5 or higher usually needed. The state's tourism office counts up to 50 viewable nights a year. For other parks worth the drive, see these lesser-known US national parks.

Can you see the northern lights in Glacier National Park? Yes, on strong nights. Glacier National Park is an International Dark Sky Park, and Lake McDonald, reachable in winter on the plowed section of Going-to-the-Sun Road, faces north across open water.

When is the best time to see the aurora in North Dakota? September and October. The Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library in Medora names them as the best months to see the aurora in North Dakota, with the strongest chances between about 10 p.m. and 2 a.m.

Where should you watch the northern lights in Theodore Roosevelt National Park? From the plateau viewpoints in either unit. Theodore Roosevelt National Park sits more than 30 miles from any large city, so the northern horizon stays dark on storm nights.

Forecasts, Gear and Aurora Photos

Two free forecasts do most of the work, one for the Lower 48 and one for Alaska. NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center publishes a 30-minute aurora map, built from solar wind measured about 1 million miles toward the sun, that gives 30 to 90 minutes of warning. Its three-day Kp forecast is for planning. For Alaska, the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute posts its own aurora forecast, which local papers like the Juneau Empire reprint each week.

Apps turn those numbers into a buzz on your phone. Bob King, the Duluth astronomy writer known as Astro Bob, tested three free alert apps in January 2026. He called My Aurora Forecast & Alerts one of the easiest to use, pays $9.99 a year for SpaceWeatherLive, which he rates the most comprehensive, and likes the Glendale app for its sighting reports from other users. His rule for the northern US is easy to remember: a Kp of 5 puts the aurora low in the north, a 6 fills much of the sky, and a 7 means go outside now.

Cameras see more than eyes do — often a lot more. Capture the Atlas suggests starting at f/2.8, ISO 3200 to 8000 and exposures of 1 to 12 seconds on a tripod, and SunshineNate's iPhone tutorial shows how Night Mode pulls color out of a glow that looks gray in person. Dress for hours of standing still. Explore Fairbanks recommends wool base layers, insulated boots, mittens over liner gloves and no cotton. These camera accessories cover the rest of the kit.

Where can you see the northern lights in the US? Fairbanks and Interior Alaska give the best odds in the US, followed by Voyageurs and the North Shore in Minnesota, Michigan's Upper Peninsula, Aroostook County in Maine, and Glacier and Theodore Roosevelt national parks on storm nights.

What is the best northern lights forecast for the US? NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center, with its 30-minute aurora map and three-day Kp forecast, is the best free northern lights forecast for the Lower 48. In Alaska, add the weekly UAF Geophysical Institute forecast.

What Kp index do you need to see the northern lights in the US? A Kp of 4 or 5 along the northern border, where the northern lights then sit low on the horizon. A 6 fills more of the sky, and a 7 or higher can reach much farther south.

What camera settings work for the northern lights? Start at f/2.8, ISO 3200 to 8000 and a shutter speed of 1 to 12 seconds on a tripod, then use shorter exposures when the northern lights move fast so the curtains stay sharp.

Organize Your Aurora Research With Miimu

If you're already picturing a green arc over Lake Superior or a long night in a Fairbanks cabin, don't let this plan scatter across a dozen tabs. Sign up for Miimu to save this bundle and turn it into your own aurora trip — add the forecast you trust, the lodge you book and the nights that fit your calendar, all in one place you can update before you go.

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