2026-10-08 · Reine
Strong aurora likely at Reine — Lofoten (8 October 2026)
Reine, Lofoten. 11.03.2019 · Christoph Strässler · CC BY-SA 2.0.
If you head out tonight, I would start at Reine. The evening looks like quite a lot of cloud there. Air around 5°C. this is a strong night on paper. If the clouds open, stay out a little longer than you planned.
Yr's aurora forecast for Leknes looks lively in the dark hours. Green in the picture is activity, grey is cloud. Kp is global; here a dark, open sky still wins.
The moon is only about 11% lit, so it will not wash the faint green away.
Aurora forecast for Leknes. Source: Yr / MET Norway.
Where I would wait
Clearest first. These are dark-sky stops hunters actually use — a little away from village and harbour lights.
- Reine — Iconic peaks. Walk a few minutes out of the harbour lights before you wait. quite a lot of cloud.
- Hamnøy — Steep peaks and water — strong photos when the sky is actually clear. quite a lot of cloud.
- Haukland — Open beach next to Uttakleiv. Easy to move if cloud sits on one bay only. quite a lot of cloud.
- Uttakleiv — West-facing beach, little village light, a classic dark-sky stop on Vestvågøy. quite a lot of cloud.
A few things that help
Watch the cloud more than the Kp number. Walk a few hundred metres away from lights, and give your eyes a quiet quarter of an hour — a phone screen resets the clock.
On the E10, pull into a marked meeting bay (M) if you meet someone. Do not stop in the road. Aurora is never a promise; a hole in the cloud is still the real ticket.
Sources
Aurora chart: Yr / MET Norway (Leknes). Planetary Kp: NOAA SWPC. Cloud at each stop: MET Norway. Road camera: Statens vegvesen. The photo is from an approved, credited place — not a promise for tonight.
A map that updates through the night: nordlysvarsel.com
