Best Places to See Aurora Australis (Southern Lights)

Where to View Southern Lights?

There are many places to glimpse dancing colors in a dark sky as either aurora borealis or aurora Australis. Do you wonder what they are? Well, going deep into the world of fantasy is normal. However, experiencing the magical sky in real life is an unexpressive moment. But do you know this is possible?

 

Aurora Borealis is one of the most prominent wishes on every traveler’s bucket list, yet you can do something adventurous by keeping aurora Australis as your priority.

You all may be aware of Auroras — The fascinating natural phenomena. And if you don’t then, you might hear the names northern lights and southern lights.

There is a detailed explanation of why auroras happen, along with several frequently asked questions. But the fundamental reason is the interaction of solar wind with the gaseous molecules in our atmosphere.

The magnetic sphere all around the earth also has a significant role in forming such adorable curtains of lights. The presence of magnetic fields is the primary reason why this phenomenon takes place only in the polar circles.

Yes, hunting southern lights are more adventurous than visualizing northern lights. Still, there are some places where you can get all the happiness to experience these adorable lights. So, let’s take you directly there.

Where Can You See the Southern Lights?

You will find very few locations for seeing southern lights, but the places we are going to discuss here are the best places to visit aurora australis.

The countries and regions familiar with the viewing of these lights are such as Australia, New Zealand, Antarctica, and South Georgia island. Let’s see the best destinations in each country.

11 Best Places for Viewing Aurora Australis:

Australia

you will feel amazed to know that there are several destinations in Australia which are suitable for viewing southern light or aurora australis. Now, let’s see where you can spend an excellent adventurous vacation hunting southern lights.

Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park, Tasmania, Australia

If you want to explore Australia, this national park is ideal for experiencing the southern lights.

Besides magical nights, you can visit this location for its peaceful environment. The most attractive things you can explore are Cradle Mountain and St Clair Lake.

Bruny Islands, Tasmania, Australia

If you are thinking of the best place to see aurora australis and just planned to visit Australia, then you won’t get such a perfect destination.

Bruny Islands of Tasmania is known best for providing mental peace to the visitors through some famous destinations like South Bruny, Alonnah, Dennes Point, Lunawanna, besides southern lights.

Satellite Island, Tasmania, Australia

You will see an astonishing view of southern light through this small south-east island in Tasmania. Low to negligible pollution and a clean environment makes it ideal to discover your world of fantasy.

Mount Nelson, Tasmania, Australia

Another fantastic destination known best for the spectacular view of southern lights is Mount Nelson. Besides enjoying this natural phenomenon, you can also sight natural spots such as the River Derwent and even the city of Hobart.

Hobart, Tasmania

Hobert is the most popular as well as the best place to see aurora australis. Due to minimal light pollution, you can ideally wait for the beauty of colorful lights with lots of other visitors.

While in this city, you can also experience the life of their locals. This is the ideal place if you want to make more connections worldwide.

South Arm Peninsula, Tasmania, Australia

If you are still curious where you can view aurora australis, then there is another place in Tasmania, Australia. Yes, this place is the South Arm Peninsula and gained popularity as the perfect spot for aurora hunters.

Instead of waiting for the magic to appear at night, you can also spend a fabulous time on this beach far away from human distractions.

Victoria, Australia

To this point, you might be aware of the idea that Australia is full of natural destinations for not only visualizing glimpses of colorful lights but for capturing the most peaceful moments.

And if you want more such locations outside Tasmania, then there is another destination, i.e., Victoria. However, you will rarely discover the perfect curtains of light shown here. Rather than thinking of Victoria as the ideal solution to your curiosity, you can enjoy a beautiful sunset view with penguin parades.

New Zealand

New Zealand is another country known dramatically for its beauty as well as the ideal location to discover aurora australis. Like Australia, New Zealand also contains a few charming places for such adventures, which are given below.

Queenstown, New Zealand

The next best place to see aurora australis is New Zealand, where Queenstown comes former. Here you will see a glorious spectrum of pink, red, blue, yellow, and green colors dancing over the dark sky. If you have another bucket wish of high-octane sports and adventures, you must visit this place.

Stewart Island, New Zealand

Another famous spot for sighting aurora australis is Stewart Island, New Zealand. Islands are always known for their natural beauty and attract tourists every year. But, if you want two in one solution, you should definitely check in there.

South Georgia Island

Besides Australia and New Zealand, another grand island known mostly for the snowy view along with a large population of penguins. However, that’s not its only limit. You can also spot the best view of the colorful arcs in a dark sky.

This destination is usually unfavorable for human living and, therefore, best for visualizing uninterrupted light shows. But, it’s dangerous to travel there during the peak winter environment.

Antarctica

If you are feeling nervous about thinking of Antarctica as the best place to see aurora australis, then don’t bother. Like South Georgia Island, Antarctica is also filled with most of our glaciers and ice-caps plus unfavorable for the existence of life.

However, there are many trips through which you can easily take the benefits of adventures near the non-existence places.

Best Time to See Aurora Australis

After grasping the idea of the best place to see aurora australis, now you must know what the right time to hunt such magical lights is.

Well, similar to northern lights, aurora australis is also seen better in a dark sky. But having a dark sky is not sufficient. That’s the reason why very few locations have better chances to glimpse beautiful shapes of colors over the sky.

A clear, pollution, or any other disturbance-free sky is excellent to capture that fantasy. Most of the southern areas are ideal because the population is minimal. Thus, human-made distractions are also less.

Usually, such celestial views are seen in the darkest sky. That means a long but deep sky approximately around 12 to 4 a.m.

Further, nights are longest in the winter, and therefore, the period of winter is the perfect time to see cool curtains of colorful lights in the southern hemisphere. So, the best time for over a year is from May to September, ideally from June to August.

Likely, aurora borealis, aurora australis lights also have an influence on the solar cycle. A typical solar cycle extends upto 11 years, and the last time it was in 2013. This period is excellent for experiencing the high frequency of dancing lights as the sunspot activities are rapid.

So, according to researchers, the next ideal moment for tourists to visualize the magical colors of auroras is between 2023- 2026.

Conclusion

Are you waiting desperately to see that magic of nature? These natural phenomena are present all the time. You can see them at any time of the year, but the intensity may vary, and you need in-depth research and lots of preparation before starting your hunt for southern lights.

You may think that you will stand all night to see these charms; however, these are not common places to stand all over winter nights. Typically, these places are coldest, and sometimes temperature falls under zero degrees. You can imagine, this is not going to be easy.

But there are lots of agencies or organizations working specifically for assisting tourists to complete their wish. You can contact them far before you plan to move there so that they will inform you of the ideal time for discovering spectacular hues of aurora australis.

Besides finding these lights, you can also take advantage of outdoor sports and the natural beauty of these eye-catching destinations in the southern circle.

So, this is all about discovering the best place and time to see aurora australis. We hope this article covers all of your queries. If you still have any doubts, comment down, and follow us for more information.