Several states across the northern U.S. may be able to see the northern lights Tuesday night into Wednesday following a severe geomagnetic storm that was observed early Tuesday, according to a forecast from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Northern lights illuminate the sky in Alaska, United States on Sept. 16, 2024. (Photo by Hasan ... [+]
The aurora borealis forecast for Tuesday night has a Kp index of four on a scale of nine, meaning the aurora will “become brighter and there will be more auroral activity” than normal, according to NOAA.
The possibility of seeing the northern lights follows a severe geomagnetic storm early Monday night into Tuesday morning that allowed the aurora borealis to be seen from places as far south in the U.S. as Mississippi, Texas and Arizona, The Washington Post reported.
The appearance of the northern lights is caused by geomagnetic activity that leads to the collisions of ions with Earth’s atmospheric gasses, creating auroral displays.
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NOAA predicted the northern lights may be visible from parts of Washington, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan and Maine.
The aurora forecast for Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024.
The northern lights are best seen in a dark location away from city lights, between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. local time. It helps to have a good vantage point, like being on top of a hill, and having an unobstructed view toward the north, NOAA said.
The aurora borealis has been more visible in recent months as the sun approaches the peak of its solar cycle, which is expected sometime between late 2024 and early 2026. A coronal mass ejection slammed into Earth on Monday night, triggering a severe geomagnetic storm just before 8 p.m. EDT, according to Space.com. Monday’s CME was reportedly the fifth-largest solar flare of the current solar cycle and produced a G4-level geomagnetic storm, providing the most “widespread display of auroras” since a historic storm in May led to the northern lights being visible in all 50 states, according to The Washington Post. Sunspots are expected to continue to intensify over the next year, which could bring more geomagnetic storms and opportunities to see the northern lights in the U.S., though they are hard to predict.