Please complete your profile to unlock commenting and other important features.

Please select your date of birth for special perks on your birthday. Your username will be your unique profile link and will be publicly used in comments.
Narcity Pro

This is a Pro feature.

Time to level up your local game with Narcity Pro.

Pro

$5/month

$40/year

  • Everything in the Free plan
  • Ad-free reading and browsing
  • Unlimited access to all content including AI summaries
  • Directly support our local and national reporting and become a Patron
  • Cancel anytime.
For Pro members only Pro
Summary

Northern lights are plunging across Canada and some spots could see a 'more intense' aurora

The aurora could even be visible in southern Ontario!

green and pink northern lights in the sky in bc

Northern lights in B.C.

Senior Writer

The northern lights are plunging across Canada, and that means almost the entire country could see the sky lit up.

Some places are expected to get a "more intense" aurora tonight!

In a new northern lights forecast for October 16, NOAA said geomagnetic storm conditions are expected on Thursday and overnight into Friday.

This forecast also includes a map with a view line that shows the southern-most places where the aurora could be seen on the northern horizon.

B.C., Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec have places that are forecast to get "more intense" northern lights tonight.

A "more intense" aurora could be seen in Prince Rupert, Smithers, Prince George, Whitehorse, Banff, Jasper, Edmonton, Calgary, Yellowknife, Regina, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, Churchill, and Moosonee.

The northern lights aren't expected to be as intense, but could still be visible in Bella Coola, Victoria, Vancouver, Kelowna, Lethbridge, Thunder Bay, Timmins, Saguenay, and Labrador City.

Places within the view line include Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, Quebec City, Moncton, Charlottetown, Corner Brook and nearby areas.

northern lights forecast map of canada for the night of october 16 2025 Northern lights forecast map for October 16, 2025.NOAA

With NOAA's forecast map, the brightness and location of the aurora are shown as a green oval that's centred on Earth's magnetic pole.

The green oval is overlaid with red on this map when the aurora is expected to be "more intense."

NOAA said that the northern lights are visible directly overhead in places within the auroral oval, but can also be observed from 1,000 kilometres away when the aurora is bright.

There are northern lights viewing tips from the Canadian Space Agency that can help you see the aurora tonight.

Usually, the northern lights appear a few hours after sunset and then become more intense around midnight.

You need to find a place with little or no light pollution to better your chances of seeing the northern lights.

If a less intense aurora is forecast, even a bit of city light can block your view.

Once you're in a dark location, look all around because the northern lights can appear anywhere in the sky, according to the Canadian Space Agency.

But if you're in a place that's along NOAA's view line, the northern lights will only be visible toward the northern horizon.

This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.

Explore this list   👀

    • Senior Writer

      Lisa Belmonte (she/her) is a Senior Writer with Narcity Media. After graduating with a Bachelor of Journalism from Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University), she joined the Narcity team. Lisa covers news and notices from across the country from a Canada-wide perspective. Her early coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic earned Narcity its first-ever national journalism award nomination.

    Northern lights could be visible across Canada this week, even in Toronto and Vancouver

    You could see a "more intense" aurora in some Canadian cities!

    Northern lights could be seen across the country on Canada Day because of geomagnetic storms

    That includes Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal and more cities!

    Here's when to put on your winter tires in 2025, based on where you live in Canada

    A cross-country guide on when your city could hit the winter tire sweet spot this fall. 🛞

    Canada's cheapest grocery stores were revealed and these discount chains came out on top

    Costco made the ranking even though you have to pay for a membership! 👀

    Canada Child Benefit payments for October go out soon and you could get over $1,200 per child

    Your next CCB payment could come with a few extras — here's who's eligible. 👇

    A new best universities ranking just dropped and Canada's big three aren't the top schools

    This list is completely different than the global university rankings. 👀

    6 University of Toronto jobs with salaries up to $124,000 a year or $53 an hour

    You can find work at the St. George and Scarborough campuses.