Bretagne

Northern lights in Lorient tonight

Real-time aurora forecast for Lorient (Bretagne) - latitude 47.75° N, estimated Kp threshold 7.

Kp index

4.3

unsettled

Hemispheric power

North21GW

South22GW

Source: app.pulsar-si.com

Tonight in Lorient

Very unlikely

Based on Kp 4.3 and Lorient's latitude.

Seeing the northern lights from Lorient

Lorient, in the Morbihan, at 47.75° N, watches the northern horizon over the bay. Auroras become visible from Kp 7. Nearby roadstead and islands (Groix, Belle-Île) offer exceptional coastal observation points with low light pollution. May 2024 produced sharp auroras visible from the harbour and the Île de Groix.

Observation conditions in Lorient

Bortle 6 in the centre. The Île de Groix (Bortle 4, 8 km offshore) and the Quiberon peninsula (Bortle 5, 30 km south-east) offer marine skies. The Florange forest and the Lanvaux moors climb to Bortle 4-5. Belle-Île-en-Mer, further out, is among the best southern Brittany skies, listed as a remarkable French sky.

Recent auroras from Lorient

10-11 May 2024 (Kp 9): aurora visible from the harbour and the Île de Groix. 24 March 2024 (Kp 8): observations from the Quiberon peninsula. 5 November 2023 (Kp 7): sightings on Belle-Île.

What Lorient asks of the sky

Geomagnetic latitude

50.2°

14 of 40

Kp index required

Kp 7

9 / 12 months

Dark nights per year

365

365 / 365

Lorient ranks 14 of the 40 cities we track, at 50.2° geomagnetic. Rennes sits 0.1° higher , Metz follows at 50°.

The threshold to clear here is Kp 7. Twelve months of archive hold 9 nights, the most recent on 4 July 2026, and 157 since 1994. Quimper and Rennes share exactly the same threshold.

Lorient keeps full astronomical night all 365 nights of the year, which every city north of the Loire loses for part of the summer.

How to read the Kp index →

Local conditions

Light pollution

Bortle 7 of 9

SQM 18.81 mag/arcsec²

Nearest darker sky

Lanveur

2 km · Bortle 2

Kp forecast, next 3 days

Source: app.pulsar-si.com. For an aurora to be visible from Lorient, Kp must exceed 7.

Wed 19 Aug

1.1

Expected max Kp

Thu 20 Aug

1.5

Expected max Kp

Fri 21 Aug

1.7

Expected max Kp

Frequently asked questions

Can you see the northern lights from Lorient?

Yes, but rarely. Typically a Kp index of ≥ 7 is needed for the aurora to become visible from Lorient (latitude 47.7° N). Major geomagnetic storms (Kp 8-9) that reach this latitude happen only a handful of times per 11-year solar cycle.

What Kp index is needed to see auroras from Lorient?

The approximate Kp threshold for Lorient is 7. Below that, auroras stay confined to high latitudes (Norway, Scotland). Above it, they gradually extend southward. A Kp of 8 gives a fair chance, 9 a strong one.

When is the best time to watch from Lorient?

Auroras are a nighttime phenomenon, best observed between roughly 10 PM and 2 AM local time, when the geomagnetic pole is tilted towards the Earth's night side. In practice, peaks depend on when a coronal mass ejection arrives - activity can spike at any hour.

Where around Lorient offers better conditions?

Move at least 40-60 km north of Lorient to escape urban light pollution and gain 1-2 magnitudes of limiting magnitude.

Nearby cities

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