Northern Lights & Stargazing

Oh heavens! The night skies are filled with celestial phenomena – stars, constellations, the Moon, the Milky Way, and the northern lights (aka aurora borealis). Want to see it all? The North Shore has very little light pollution, especially away from the shoreline communities, making for ideal night sky viewing.

The vast night skies are another free North Shore attraction, open every night, easy to access.

when to see the northern lights

Check below for the current northern lights forecast. Since these are storms, the forecast can change. Check back weekly as we update often.

North Shore Northern Lights

Seeing the northern lights is breathtaking, inspiring, awesome. Shafts of luminescent green light dance across the sky. Fans of pink glow for hours. Vibrant, pulsating white wands illuminate the night heavens. This is the aurora borealis.

And to be perfectly frank, what looks like the white glow of light pollution is also the northern lights. Less showy, but frequent because northern lights are a geomagnetic storm that occurs close to the earth’s poles. When the storm is big and the winds are right the storm can be seen here.

The bigger the storm, the bigger show. Aurora forecasts are just that, predictions. If there is a likely chance we post a notice (see northern lights forecast below). As with other storms, sometimes they pass quickly and sometimes they linger all night.

Northern Lights Viewing Tips

Look to the north sky, this generally means Lake Superior is over your right shoulder.

Get away from lights, a mere half mile inland does the trick.

The higher in elevation you are, the better your chances of seeing the lights, and getting an unobstructed view.

If you see a smear of white over the forest, you may be seeing the aurora. Watch and see if it moves.

I wish I could give you photography tips, but that eludes me. Which is lucky because then I watch and appreciate.

Stargazing and viewing tips

A more consistent evening display is the Milky Way. This massive spiraling star formation has a dense nucleus and thin surround disc. When we see the hazy band of light bending across the night sky, we are looking at the Milky Way.

Moonless nights are best for night sky viewing – we’ve listed those times below.

The Milky Way is brightest in the summer months and can be seen in the east/southeast sky. Binoculars will let you zoom in on the shimmering stars.

Northern Lights forecast

Lyrids Meteor Shower

April 16, 2026 8:00 pm - April 25, 2026 11:45 pm

The Lyrids meteor shower is a medium-strength shower that's active between April 16-25 each year, according to the American Meteor Society (AMS). It will peak on the night of April 22 into the early morning of April 23, displaying about 18 meteors per hour in a clear sky. The moon will only be 9% full, so it won't interfere with your observations. The radiant of the Lyrids will be high in the northern hemisphere's sky during the near-dawn hours. The radiant will be between the constellations Lyra and Hercules. The bright star Vega is part of Lyra, so you can also look for it to get a good idea of where the radiant for the Lyrids will be. Viewers should have a good view of the meteor shower for the three days around the shower's peak, according to AMS. Astronomers think the source for all the space bits that create the Lyrid meteor shower is Comet Thatcher. The Lyrids have been viewed by different cultures for the past 2,700 years, according to NASA.

Taurids Meteor Shower

November 12, 2025 9:00 pm - November 13, 2025 5:00 am

The Taurids meteor shower is an annual meteor shower that occurs every November and is composed of two streams, the Southern Taurids and the Northern Taurids. The Taurids are known for producing bright fireballs, and 2025 is predicted to be a year with an increased number of them At peak viewing times during the Taurid meteor shower, you may be able to see about a half-dozen shooting stars per hour. The Northern Taurids are active between Oct 20 - Dec 10 and peak on Nov. 12.

Leonids Meteor Shower

November 17, 2025 9:00 pm - November 18, 2025 4:00 am

The Leonids meteor shower offers clear-sky meteor rates of about 10 to 15 shooting stars per hour. They are active between Nov. 6 - 30 and will peak on Nov. 17-18. The Leonids are bright meteors and have a high percentage of persistent trains according to AMS. The Leonids' radiant is located in the sickle-shaped head of the constellation Leo, the lion. Leonid meteor hunting can be incredible, or a total bust. It all depends on where its parent body, Comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle, will be in its orbit and the kind of debris clumps that will be around when our planet passes through this comet's orbit.

Geminids Meteor Shower

December 13, 2025 10:00 pm - December 14, 2025 3:00 am

The Geminids meteor shower occurs between November 19 to December 24 and this year will peak on the nights of December 13 and 14. The shower can produce 130 to 140 bright, white, fast meteors per hour on a clear sky. The debris that falls onto Earth's atmosphere during this meteor shower comes from the asteroid Phaethon. The meteor shower's radiant is located in the constellation Gemini, which rises around sunset.

Ursids Meteor Shower

December 21, 2025 10:00 pm - December 22, 2025 3:00 am

The Ursids meteor shower is active between Dec. 17-26 and this year will peak on Dec. 21-22. The moon will be slight over half full. The Ursids are associated with Comet 8P/Tuttle, a periodic comet that follows a 13.5-year elliptical orbit around the sun.

November Full Moon

November 5, 2025 12:00 am - November 5, 2025 11:59 pm

November Full Moon - 2nd of 3 supermoons in a row A perigee is when the moon 's orbit is closest to the earth and a supermoon is when the full or new moon coincide (or almost coincide) with the perigee. What does that mean? The moon looks exceptionally big because it is close! Full moons have many names derived from various cultures reflecting what was happening in the natural world. While the Frost Moon and Freezing Moon are self-explanatory, November's full moon is most known as the Beaver Moon. Beavers are quite active preparing for winter. Also known as the Mourning Moon, due to the increase in darkness.

December Full Moon

December 4, 2025 12:00 am - December 4, 2025 11:59 pm

December Full Moon - 3rd of 3 supermoons in a row A perigee is when the moon 's orbit is closest to the earth and a supermoon is when the full or new moon coincide (or almost coincide) with the perigee. What does that mean? The moon looks exceptionally big because it is close! Full moons have many names derived from various cultures reflecting what was happening in the natural world. December's full moon is known as the Cold Moon or Long Nights Moon. In addition to the shortest daylight day of the year, the Long Nights Moon pertains to the amount of time the moon is above the horizon. It takes a high trajectory across the sky because it is opposite to the low sun.

Best Times for Stargazing

Best Stargazing January

January 18, 2026 4:30 am - January 19, 2026 4:30 am

Best Stargazing January - New moon nights – night when the moon is absent from the sky – make for great stargazing. Here’s a great way to start – look due north after the sun has set and find the Big Dipper constellation [see photo] with its telltale 3-star handle and 4-star dipper. In the winter, the dipper is at ‘3-o’clock’ with the handle hanging down.

Best Stargazing February

February 17, 2026 4:45 pm - February 18, 2026 4:45 am

Best Stargazing February - New moon nights – night when the moon is absent from the sky – make for great stargazing. Here’s a great way to start – look due north after the sun has set and find the Big Dipper constellation [see photo] with its telltale 3-star handle and 4-star dipper. In the winter, the dipper is at ‘3-o’clock’ with the handle hanging down.

Best Stargazing October

October 12, 2026 8:00 pm - October 13, 2026 11:45 pm

Best Stargazing October - New moon nights – night when the moon is absent from the sky – make for great stargazing. Here’s a great way to start – look due north after the sun has set and find the Big Dipper constellation [see photo] with its telltale 3-star handle and 4-star dipper. In the autumn, the dipper is at ‘6-o’clock’ with the dipper facing up/handle to the left.

Taurids Meteor Shower

November 12, 2025 9:00 pm - November 13, 2025 5:00 am

Best Stargazing November

November 20, 2025 8:00 pm - November 20, 2025 11:45 pm

Best Stargazing November - New moon nights – night when the moon is absent from the sky – make for great stargazing. Here’s a great way to start – look due north after the sun has set and find the Big Dipper constellation [see photo] with its telltale 3-star handle and 4-star dipper. In the autumn, the dipper is at ‘6-o’clock’ with the dipper facing up/handle to the left.

Leonids Meteor Shower

November 17, 2025 9:00 pm - November 18, 2025 4:00 am

Geminids Meteor Shower

December 13, 2025 10:00 pm - December 14, 2025 3:00 am

Ursids Meteor Shower

December 21, 2025 10:00 pm - December 22, 2025 3:00 am

Best Stargazing December

December 19, 2025 7:00 pm - December 19, 2025 7:00 pm

Best Stargazing December - New moon nights – night when the moon is absent from the sky – make for great stargazing. Here’s a great way to start – look due north after the sun has set and find the Big Dipper constellation [see photo] with its telltale 3-star handle and 4-star dipper. In the winter, the dipper is at ‘3-o’clock’ with the handle hanging down.