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The northern lights have a moderate chance of appearing in the skies above some states Tuesday evening, forecasters at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicted, as the Earth could see the effects of minor geomagnetic storms.
Forecasters at NOAA predicted a Kp index of four for Tuesday night, indicating the northern lights have a moderate chance of appearing brighter with more “motions and formations.”
Experts are also predicting minor geomagnetic storms on Tuesday evening, due to coronal mass ejections that were detected leaving the Sun on October 3, NOAA said in their forecast.
The aurora could be viewable in some states along the U.S.-Canadian border, according to forecasters at NOAA. These include northern Washington, northern Idaho, most of Montana, North Dakota, and parts of South Dakota. The lights could be viewable from much of the upper Midwest as well, including northern parts of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan. Most of Alaska also falls within the view line for the lights.
Prospective northern lights viewers should travel north, towards Earth’s magnetic north pole, experts at NOAA say. Travel away from city lights, and find a vantage point with a clear view north. The aurora is most active in the hours just before and after midnight, so viewers should aim to view the lights between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m.
Experts who spoke to National Geographic recommend viewers should always bring along a tripod to stabilize your equipment for the length of time needed to capture images of the night sky. If using a camera, pack a wide angle lens or a lens with an aperture of 4.0 or lower. Smartphone cameras can also capture images of the aurora, but work best after turning off flash and switching to night mode.
Coronal mass ejections are plasma releases from the sun that are stronger than normal solar winds. This material can cause geomagnetic storms when it interacts with the Earth’s magnetic field, but the storm predicted by forecasters for Monday is minor—a G1 out of five on NOAA’s scale measuring storm strength. G1 storms can still cause minor impacts on satellites and weak power grid fluctuations, as well as cause the northern lights to appear in more parts of the United States.