The northern lights illuminate the night sky in Grand Bend, Ontario, Canada, during a geomagnetic storm on May 12, 2024.
Geoff Robins/AFP via Getty Images
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Geoff Robins/AFP via Getty Images
A powerful geomagnetic storm forecasted for Sunday night could make the colorful northern lights visible across parts of the U.S., according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Space Weather Prediction Center.
The aurora could appear over much of the northern half of the contiguous U.S., even as far south as northern California and Alabama, the center reported.
Space weather officials detected a solar flare associated with this geomagnetic storm on Friday, and National Weather Service offices from Rapid City, S.D., to Spokane, Wash., have posted photos of the telltale green and purple streaks in the sky captured earlier Sunday.
The geomagnetic storm, expected to last through late Monday, is being driven by an ongoing coronal mass ejection, which occurs when the sun releases large amounts of plasma and magnetic field into space.
This disturbance in the solar wind can affect Earth’s magnetosphere and cause issues on our planet. Federal officials warn that a G3 (strong) or G4 (severe) geomagnetic storm is possible, weather that could disrupt power systems, hinder satellite operations, and interfere with radio communications.
The Space Weather Prediction Center noted that despite the weakening of the coronal mass ejection, elevated solar wind conditions could still lead to a significant cosmic event.
The northern lights, created by solar wind interacting with Earth’s magnetic field and atmosphere, are best seen in a dark setting late at night or early in the morning.
