Aurora in Auckland

[Yak]

What sort of conditions do you need to see the aurora in Auckland, NZ? I believe it will be over KP8, but is there a better way to see if it will be visible? 

Thanks 

yak

[Newbie]

4 hours ago, Yak said:

What sort of conditions do you need to see the aurora in Auckland, NZ? I believe it will be over KP8, but is there a better way to see if it will be visible? 

Thanks 

yak

Auckland NZ, 36ºS is a similar latitude to Melbourne, Australia 37ºS therefore you might see auroras at probably Kp 8-9. If you went down to Southland it would be  Kp 5, If you are really keen there is a guy who organises Air NZ flights towards Antarctica, at least twice a year. around the time of the autumn equinox when the aurora is usually present. He flies out of Christchurch. He often posts his pics on Spaceweather.com aurora page. His name is Dr Ian Griffin from Otago University. 

I have a nice photo of the ‘Church of the Good Shepherd’ in Central  with an amazing aurora as a backdrop.

if you want naked eye sightings you would perhaps need Kp 7-8? maybe less, in Southern NZ. It never looks as good as the photos. Just a grey green smudge, more if you’re lucky. Sometimes you can see picket fence type arrangements. If photography is your thing I have seen good photos with  long exposures (up to 30 secs) when Kp has been around 4-5 taken near Queenstown and Invercargill. Always need a completely dark location, clear skies and around local midnight onwards. 

A few years ago we travelled all the way up to Abisko in Northern Sweden to see the aurora and saw nothing! Lake Tornetrask which always has clear skies had clouds. Grr!

Good luck I hope you get to see it.

N.

Edited June 8, 2022 by Newbie

[3gMike]

4 hours ago, Yak said:

What sort of conditions do you need to see the aurora in Auckland, NZ? I believe it will be over KP8, but is there a better way to see if it will be visible? 

Thanks 

yak

You can track probability of seeing Aurora here https://www.spaceweatherlive.com/en/auroral-activity/auroral-oval.html