North Dakota: Northern Lights are Stargazer's Heaven

Most of North Dakota is perfectly suited for viewing the many wonders of the night sky, including the spectacular aurora borealis (northern lights). Those amazing lights dance across a black background in vivid green, purple and blue. Sometimes they compete for attention with a full moon that is bright enough to read by. Click here for tips on viewing the northern lights in North Dakota.

Stargazers don't have to drive far out of our larger cities and towns to be alone with the rest of the universe. Staring up, we wonder what's there. Does anybody see us? Do we see anybody else on that tiny light so far away? We contemplate things we can’t understand like how far is a thousand light years? Sometimes we're treated to meteor showers or the twinkling lights of jets flying over or a steady line of Starlink satellites; even the International Space Station cruising past.

North Dakota is one of the best places to scan the dark skies for the northern lights or uncounted stars, planets and galaxies. Take a look outside on a crisp, clear night, some of the best places for viewing the northern lights are Theodore Roosevelt National Park, any of North Dakota's state parks and scenic areas like Crow Flies High Butte at New Town and Mystical Horizons in the Turtle Mountains near Bottineau.