Northern lights Maryland tonight
Maryland at ~49°N magnetic latitude needs Kp 4 from dark sky sites. The state's geography spans from the Appalachian mountains of Garrett County in the west to the flat Eastern Shore facing east. Garrett County gives the darkest accessible sky in the state at altitude. Assateague Island gives a north-facing ocean horizon at Bortle 2. Best season: September to April.
Aurora visibility - Maryland
Unlikely tonight
Kp 1 is well below the Kp 4–5 threshold needed for aurora to be visible from Maryland.
Current Kp
1
of 9
7-day outlook for Maryland
Today
3 Jun
Tomorrow
4 Jun
Fri
5 Jun
Sat
6 Jun
Sun
7 Jun
Mon
8 Jun
Tue
9 Jun
Based on CME arrival predictions from NASA DONKI. Arrival times ±6 hours.
auroratonight.space
What Kp is needed here?
Maryland sits at a magnetic latitude of approximately 49°N. The Kp index - a global measure of geomagnetic activity on a scale from 0 (quiet) to 9 (extreme storm), updated every 3 hours - needs to reach Kp 4–5 before the auroral oval expands far enough south to be visible from here.
At Kp 4–5, visibility is possible from Maryland but skies need to be clear and dark. Cloud cover and light pollution remain the main obstacles even when Kp is high enough.
Best dark sky sites near Maryland
Light pollution is the biggest obstacle after cloud cover. These sites give you the best dark northern horizon within reach.
Garrett County / Deep Creek Lake
Get directions ↗The Allegheny Mountains of western Maryland - Maryland's highest county at around 900 m - give the state's best dark sky. Swallow Falls State Park and the Potomac State Forest around Oakland give Bortle 3 conditions. North-facing ridge positions on the mountains face across relatively undeveloped West Virginia highlands. The altitude adds a marginal advantage for sky transparency. About 160 miles from Baltimore via I-68.
Assateague Island National Seashore (Maryland side)
Get directions ↗The barrier island faces east and north across the Atlantic with no development to the ocean horizon. The north end of Assateague near the Ocean City inlet is affected by resort lighting - move to the central Maryland section (accessible via the Assateague Island National Seashore entrance near Berlin) for Bortle 2 sky. The open ocean horizon to the north and east gives an unobstructed view at low elevation. About 130 miles from Baltimore via US-50.
Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge
Get directions ↗On the Eastern Shore south of Cambridge, Blackwater NWR gives open tidal marsh with a flat horizon in all directions. The refuge faces north with minimal light pollution across the marsh. Bortle 3-4 conditions. About 90 miles from Baltimore. The flat marsh terrain is an asset: the northern horizon is unobstructed by trees or terrain, which matters for catching low aurora arcs during Kp 4-5 events.
Best time to see the northern lights in Maryland
Maryland's aurora season runs from late September through to March, when nights are long enough for truly dark skies. The equinox months, September and March, bring a natural boost in geomagnetic activity, making them statistically the best of the season. Summer months bring too much twilight for aurora to be visible at this latitude.
Activity peaks around the September and March equinoxes, when Earth's magnetic field geometry is most favourable for coupling with the solar wind. Events during these two windows tend to produce the strongest displays of the year for observers at Maryland's latitude.
April through August brings persistent astronomical twilight that washes out aurora completely. Even strong events (Kp 6+) remain invisible during this period because the sky never gets dark enough.
Compare nearby locations
Up to 4 locations
Related pages
Northern Lights USA
USA-wide aurora forecast hub.
Northern Lights Washington DC Tonight
DC - similar latitude, same Kp threshold as Maryland.
Northern Lights Virginia Tonight
Virginia - Shenandoah NP and the Blue Ridge Parkway, Kp 4-5.
Northern Lights Pennsylvania Tonight
Pennsylvania - Cherry Springs State Park, one of the east's darkest sites.
What Is the Kp Index?
What Kp 4-5 means for viewing at 49°N magnetic latitude.
Aurora photographs from Maryland
Aurora borealis over Maryland
Aurora borealis over Maryland
Aurora borealis over Maryland
Aurora borealis over Maryland
Aurora borealis over Maryland
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center from Greenbelt, MD, USA · CC BY 2.0 · Source
Aurora borealis over Maryland
Common questions
Aurora in Maryland - Garrett County vs Assateague, Baltimore and DC visibility, and Kp thresholds.
