UK space weather & aurora tracker
How disturbed Earth's magnetic field is right now, what the next three days look like, and whether the Northern Lights might reach the UK — from NOAA data, the Met Office's operational partner.
Source data 5 November 2026 · last checked 5 November 2026, 18:20 · NOAA SWPC
The marker is the storm threshold (Kp 5). Below it, activity is calm; at or above it, a geomagnetic storm is under way on the NOAA G-scale (G1 Minor up to G5 Extreme). Latest reading 5 November 2026, 15:00 (UK time).
Low — the aurora may be visible from Scotland and the far north of England, low on the northern horizon.
What this means — and what it doesn't
The Kp index measures how disturbed Earth's magnetic field is, from 0 (calm) to 9 (extreme). Most days it sits low and nothing happens. When a solar storm pushes it to 5 or above, two things can follow: the aurora becomes visible further south, and — only in a severe storm — there can be minor effects on GPS accuracy, radio and, at the extreme, the power grid.
Even the strongest storm in over 20 years, in May 2024, mainly gave Britain a spectacular light show with only minor GPS and radio disruption — not blackouts. The grid is engineered for this. If you want the full, calm picture, read the guide.
Solar storms, the aurora and the grid: a calm guide| Thu 5 Nov | 0.7 | |
| Wed 4 Nov | 1.7 | |
| Tue 3 Nov | 1.7 | |
| Mon 2 Nov | 1 | |
| Sun 1 Nov | 2.3 | |
| Sat 31 Oct | 6 | |
| Fri 30 Oct | 1.3 |
See all 60 days
| Thu 29 Oct | 0.3 | |
| Wed 28 Oct | 2.3 | |
| Tue 27 Oct | 2 | |
| Mon 26 Oct | 0.7 | |
| Sun 25 Oct | 1.7 | |
| Sat 24 Oct | 1.7 | |
| Fri 23 Oct | 4.3 | |
| Thu 22 Oct | 3.7 | |
| Wed 21 Oct | 3.7 | |
| Tue 20 Oct | 2.7 | |
| Mon 19 Oct | 0.7 | |
| Sun 18 Oct | 1.3 | |
| Sat 17 Oct | 2.7 | |
| Fri 16 Oct | 3.7 | |
| Thu 15 Oct | 2.3 | |
| Wed 14 Oct | 2.7 | |
| Tue 13 Oct | 3 | |
| Mon 12 Oct | 2 | |
| Sun 11 Oct | 1.7 | |
| Sat 10 Oct | 6.7 | |
| Fri 9 Oct | 1.3 | |
| Thu 8 Oct | 2 | |
| Wed 7 Oct | 2.3 | |
| Tue 6 Oct | 2 | |
| Mon 5 Oct | 3.3 | |
| Sun 4 Oct | 5.7 | |
| Sat 3 Oct | 0.7 | |
| Fri 2 Oct | 0.7 | |
| Thu 1 Oct | 1.3 | |
| Wed 30 Sept | 0.7 | |
| Tue 29 Sept | 1 | |
| Mon 28 Sept | 1 | |
| Sun 27 Sept | 0.3 | |
| Sat 26 Sept | 2.3 | |
| Fri 25 Sept | 2.7 | |
| Thu 24 Sept | 2 | |
| Wed 23 Sept | 1.7 | |
| Tue 22 Sept | 0.7 | |
| Mon 21 Sept | 0 | |
| Sun 20 Sept | 0.3 | |
| Sat 19 Sept | 1.7 | |
| Fri 18 Sept | 1 | |
| Thu 17 Sept | 1.7 | |
| Wed 16 Sept | 0.7 | |
| Tue 15 Sept | 2 | |
| Mon 14 Sept | 2.7 | |
| Sun 13 Sept | 1 | |
| Sat 12 Sept | 1.3 | |
| Fri 11 Sept | 1.7 | |
| Thu 10 Sept | 1.3 | |
| Wed 9 Sept | 3 | |
| Tue 8 Sept | 3 | |
| Mon 7 Sept | 4 |
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Start free →Source: NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center (planetary K-index) — operational partner of the Met Office Space Weather Operations Centre. The Kp index and NOAA G-scale are the standard global measures of geomagnetic activity; UK aurora visibility also depends on clear, dark skies. For official UK warnings see the Met Office Space Weather Operations Centre.
