Hey everyone, Im planning a trip somewhere in November ( tentatively) to view the northern lights. After much research, concluded that Tromso is one of the best spot to see the Northern lights. So just to check, is November a relatively good time to view the aurora? Well, Im also planning to go Iceland and Finland in November too, just in case I can't get to see the Aurora in Tromso, I still have Iceland and Finland. Heh.
Any help will be much appreciated! Thanks in advance.
indignation
1
bjoern
well - nights are long in November so that's good.
Do not know why you think Tromsø is such a good place - have you looked at weather statistics? - at the Atlantic coast there is a fair amound of clouds.
Statistics says: 20 days with (some) precipitation (rain mostly at these temperatures) - so you can guess that there are clouds "some" time during at least 20 of the 30 days i November - in average.
Remember that there are few things that YOU can influence re seeing NL:
Bjorns DIY guide to seeing the NL:
- get at a high latitude around or (not too far) north of the Polar Circle.
- in the winter (between equinoxes) when it is dark for between 10 and 24 hours
- find a place with lots of time with clear skies
- go when there is no full moon (or when the moon does not rise)
- get away from city lights
...and then you just hope for NL to being "on" and the weater to cooperate. Just stay long enough and you will succeed.
The first 4 things are easy to look up with a map + weather statistics and a table (on the net) with sun rise/sunset and moon rise/moon set and phase of the moon at the given location.
2
indignation
Oh guess I should check on the weather too. But I will only go in November...Isnt it kinda early to forecast it now? Most probably I will head to Iceland, Finland and Norway to view the aurora. Im actually comtemplating to go Svalbard, but seeing that its really up north, the chances arent that good I guess? Though Ive read alot of people manage to view aurora in november till march. Urgh. I hope I get lucky!
3
bjoern
Forget the forecast until 5-7 days before -and it is still unreliabe. Still there is the statistics - I mean there are "fixed patterns": If statistics says it rains 30 days/month and total is 400 mm (like some areas in Asia in monsoon season) there is little idea planning a "sunbathing at the beach holiday". Or if average tmeperature in a month is +5°C no reason to plan skiing.
Your best chances (re weather) is Finland if you are going up north. Also Iceland at the nothern coast may be a reasonably good place.
Svalbard isn't bad if you can afford going there - but the season is a problem (DARK and b not really winter - look up if there are any tours possible)
4
ponaire
We spent 5 nights in Tromso last month and were fortunate enough to see aurora on 3 of our 5 nights there - including on two occasions over the city itself - although we got our best photos when out of the city away from light pollution. It is a truly beautiful phenonemon. I will never forget the night of our first sighting - dogsledding in the Lyngen Alps wilderness with a particularly fantastic showing of the northern lights above us. Magical.....
Tromso is very geared up for northern lights tourists and there are lots of trip options available (some better than others) but it is very expensive - trips, food etc are all very expensive. It will be the dearest of your 3 destinations. We loved it though and would recommend it to anyone but yes, it is renowned for being cloudy.
One of the best websites is the one below for up-to-date information - click on Europe under the aurora oval sign. This is very useful if you have free wifi/internet in your accommodation.
http://www.spaceweather.com/
Pro tip
Lonely Planet
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