is the aurora visible?

Northern lights in Rovaniemi in December

Possible, with patience — 15% of December nights offer a window.

15%of nights offer a window
12 hof darkness per night
53%of days with enough solar activity
28%of nights with a clear hour

The numbers behind it: December nights in Rovaniemi average about 12 dark hours, geomagnetic activity reaches local viewing levels on 53% of days, and 28% of nights offer at least one reasonably clear hour after dark.

The sky itself is the main obstacle in December — clouds spoil more nights than quiet solar activity does. Build in spare nights, and be ready to drive toward whatever gap the cloud forecast shows.

Numbers come from 1996–2025 Kp records (GFZ Potsdam) and 2015–2024 hourly cloud history for Rovaniemi itself — the full method is on the methodology page. Travelling soon? Check tonight's live Rovaniemi forecast.

December against the rest of the year

  1. Jan18% of nights
  2. Feb21% of nights
  3. Mar36% of nights
  4. Apr24% of nights
  5. Maymidnight sun
  6. Junmidnight sun
  7. Julmidnight sun
  8. Aug11% of nights
  9. Sep29% of nights
  10. Oct24% of nights
  11. Nov14% of nights
  12. Dec15% of nights

November in Rovaniemi · January in Rovaniemi · full year overview

December elsewhere under the oval