From The Ballad of the Northern Lights by Robert Service. by Dr. Neil Davis (reprint). The Aurora, also known as the Northern Lights, has mystified people down through the ages, scientists, poets, and lay persons alike. Written records of so-called great auroral displays date back more than two thousand years.
http://alaska.gov/kids/learn/northernlights.htm
AURORAS OCCUR along ring-shaped regions around the north and south geomagnetic poles. Fairbanks, Alaska, is a good place for Aurora watching because it is under this region in the north, where people see Aurora Borealis, or northern lights; the southern Aurora is Aurora Australis.
http://alaska.gov/kids/learn/northernlights.htm
Another factor in choosing a best time of year has to be comfort for the viewer. The months of March and late September-October combine both mild weather and dark skies. During the summer the sky is not dark enough to see the Aurora Borealis. In the winter you can see the Aurora Borealis but in temperatures of -40°F you may freeze trying. (Answered by Bob Swanson, USA TODAY's assistant weather editor, July 10, 2005).
http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/weather/resources/askjack/2003-10-10-northern-lights_x.htm
Alaska’s Northern Lights. We often get inquiries from folks interested in seeing the Aurora Borealis, locally known in Alaska as the Northern Lights. During the summer months, it is very unlikely that you would see the Northern Lights due to Alaska’s Midnight Sun.
http://blog.alaskatravel.com/alaskas-northern-lights/
By the way, so far I've been talking of the aurora borealis, or the northern lights. There is a similar aurora australis, or southern lights, in the Southern Hemisphere, but fewer people see them because the southern auroral oval is over Antarctica.
http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/weather/resources/askjack/2003-10-10-northern-lights_x.htm
A: Alaska is by far the best place in the USA to see northern lights, because they occur in the auroral oval, which is centered on the northern geomagnetic pole, and which usually passes over Alaska.
http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/weather/resources/askjack/2003-10-10-northern-lights_x.htm
During the winter months, the opportunity to see the Northern Lights increases the further north you travel. For the greatest likelihood of observing the Northern Lights, I’d suggest planning a visit to Fairbanks or Interior Alaska.
http://blog.alaskatravel.com/alaskas-northern-lights/
There are a few local companies, such as Northern Alaska Tours, that have multi-day winter tours that travel up the Dalton Highway to such places as Coldfoot seeking out the Northern Lights. For more information on Alaska’s Northern Lights, visit the website of the University of Alaska, Fairbanks’ Geophysical Institute. The Institute has a lot of information on the Aurora available and they also report and forecast the likelihood of seeing the Aurora Borealis at various locations around Alaska.
http://blog.alaskatravel.com/alaskas-northern-lights/
You can see where the oval is by going to a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Web page with a near real-time map locating the northern auroral oval. You can also check out the University of Alaska's aurora forecast.
http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/weather/resources/askjack/2003-10-10-northern-lights_x.htm
When To See Them. Unfortunately, the best time to witness the Northern Lights is in the dead of winter, from 11:30 p.m. to 3:30 a.m., with peaks around 1:30 or 2:30 a.m.
http://traveltips.usatoday.com/alaska-cruises-see-northern-lights-17540.html
what month is the northern lights in alaska
Winter months are the Northern lights in Alaska. In Alaska, the northern lights is in winter months.