AdminIf you’re near the US-Canada border tonight, you’re in luck: the Northern Lights may hang on for a little longer, giving you another chance to catch a glimpse of nature’s breathtaking light show.
The aurora borealis began appearing in parts of the northern United States over the weekend, with sightings reported in states including Minnesota, Oregon, Pennsylvania, California and Maryland, and coincided with the Perseid meteor shower, which peaked on Sunday night.
Sun creates solar storm on Earth, could bring vibrant aurora borealis to US
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC) said the aurora borealis may still be visible in the northern U.S. on Tuesday, illuminating areas including northern Michigan and Maine.
Credit: NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center
If you’re not sure if you’re close enough north, it might still be worth going outside and looking up at the sky to check: According to the SWPC, when conditions are right, the aurora can be seen from over 600 miles away.
To get the best view of the Northern Lights, you need to be in an area with as little light pollution as possible. Cloud cover can also obscure your view of the lights, but unfortunately there’s little you can do about that. Timing is also important: the Northern Lights can’t be seen during the day, so try to look for them after the sun has set. The SWPC recommends the best viewing times are between 10pm and 2am.
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The solar winds that cause the auroras can affect power grids and satellites. Luckily, SWPC expects “weak power grid fluctuations” and “minor impacts to satellite operations,” so you can enjoy the light show in peace.
How do the auroras form?
The aurora borealis seen during the Perseid meteor shower on August 12, 2024, in Joshua Tree National Park, California.
Credit: APU GOMES / AFP via Getty Images
Auroras are caused by activity on the Sun’s surface, such as solar flares, and this week’s special spectacle is the result of a recent coronal mass ejection.
The Sun’s corona is the outermost layer of the Sun’s atmosphere and is composed of superheated ionized gas called plasma. When a coronal mass ejection occurs, a large amount of plasma and magnetic fields are ejected from the solar corona. Such solar ejections travel slower than solar flares, with the fastest moving coronal mass ejections taking almost a full day to reach Earth.
When the solar wind arrives, most of it is deflected into space by Earth’s magnetic field. But some of its charged ion particles enter the magnetic field instead and travel to the poles, where the magnetic field is weakest. These ions collide with oxygen and nitrogen atoms, setting off reactions that create the auroras.
Auroras that occur in Earth’s Northern Hemisphere are called Aurora Borealis, or the Northern Lights. Auroras that occur in the Southern Hemisphere are called Aurora Australis, or the Southern Lights.
People in Australia and New Zealand have also been enjoying the Aurora Australis this week, lighting up the night sky in brilliant pinks and greens.
The Aurora Borealis lights up above the horizon of Lake Ellesmere, just outside Christchurch, New Zealand, on August 12, 2024.
Credit: Sanka Vidanagama / NurPhoto, Getty Images
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