Northern lights in Reykjavík in March
Iceland. Figures for March 2027, calculated by us. Times are local.
Go
Yes: long, dark nights. In mid-March the sky is dark enough for the aurora from about 21:12 to 05:59, 8.5 hours a night.
Darkness through the month
- 1 March: 10.3 hours of darkness.
- 15 March: 8.5 hours.
- End of March: 6.5 hours. The nights are getting shorter through the month.
“Dark” here means the Sun is more than 12° below the horizon. Faint aurora needs a darker sky; a strong display can show earlier in the evening.
The Moon in March 2027
- New Moon: 8 March 2027. The week around it has the darkest skies.
- Full Moon: 22 March 2027. A bright Moon makes the aurora look fainter, though it is still there.
What to expect
- The aurora appears only on active nights, and only where it is clear. Plan several nights and check the forecast each day: how to read it.
- NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center names the weeks around the equinoxes, in March and September, as the best season for aurora watching.
- City lights wash out faint aurora. Þingvellir National Park, about 40 km away, or any dark stretch of coast is a far better place to wait.
Get a note when it is worth going out
A short email before an eclipse, a strong meteor shower or a dark week worth planning for. No more than a few a month.
Reykjavík: the whole year. All northern lights destinations.
Sources
- Darkness, sunrise and Moon phases: our calculation, Astronomy Engine 2.1.19 (MIT licence). How we worked it out.
- NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center, Tips on viewing the aurora.