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Tonight's aurora verdict — Victoria
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Live Kp index and 24-hour forecast
Current planetary Kp
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Solar wind right now
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Best aurora viewing locations in Victoria
These dark-sky lookouts combine an unobstructed view toward the bass strait with minimal light pollution. Peak viewing in Victoria runs march to september during g2+ geomagnetic storms.
Aireys Inlet (Split Point Lighthouse)
Melbourne — 1 h 45 min
Great Ocean Road clifftop with Bass Strait horizon — Melbourne's most photographed aurora site.
Cape Schanck
Melbourne — 1 h 30 min
Mornington Peninsula south-facing cliffs. Bortle 4 sky, easy to reach.
Wilsons Promontory
Melbourne — 3 h
Mainland Australia's southern-most point. Dark Bortle 2 sky, full southern horizon.
Victoria sees Aurora Australis several times a year during moderate to strong geomagnetic storms. From dark-sky lookouts on the Great Ocean Road, the Mornington Peninsula and Wilsons Promontory, Victorians need a planetary Kp of about 6 to see clear colour and around Kp 5 to capture green and red bands on camera. The Bass Strait coast — Aireys Inlet, Cape Schanck and Phillip Island — provides the clearest southern horizon, while the high country around Mount Hotham can rise above coastal cloud during winter displays. The 2024–2026 solar maximum is producing the strongest aurora cycle in twenty years, with the May 2024 and October 2024 G5 storms lighting up Melbourne suburbs themselves. This page shows tonight's live Kp, the 24-hour forecast and Victoria's best dark-sky aurora spots, plus moon phase guidance so you know when to head south.
Kp index — what it means in Australia
The planetary Kp index runs 0–9. Higher Kp pushes the aurora further from the magnetic pole, making it visible from lower latitudes.
Kp 0–3 — Quiet
No aurora visible from mainland Australia. Possible faint glow at extreme southern Tasmania.
Kp 4 — Unsettled
Camera-only horizon glow possible from southern Tasmania.
Kp 5 (G1) — Minor storm
Visible aurora across Tasmania. Faint glow on horizon from Victoria, South Australia and far-south WA.
Kp 6 (G2) — Moderate storm
Bright aurora overhead in Tasmania. Clearly visible from VIC, SA and southern WA coasts.
Kp 7 (G3) — Strong storm
Vivid colour visible from VIC/SA/WA. Reaches as far north as Sydney and Perth.
Kp 8 (G4) — Severe storm
Aurora visible from NSW, WA and southern QLD. Once-a-year event.
Kp 9 (G5) — Extreme storm
Aurora visible from the entire continent including Brisbane and Darwin. Once-a-decade event.
Related forecasts & resources
Aurora Victoria — Frequently asked questions
Live Kp, OVATION map and storm alerts from the NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center. Australian context from the Bureau of Meteorology Space Weather Services.
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