About 10 of the northernmost U.S. states have a chance to see the northern lights Saturday night, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration forecasts, as isolated minor geomagnetic storms are expected throughout the day.
Northern lights may be visible in several U.S. states Saturday night. (Photo by Hasan Akbas/Anadolu ... [+]
NOAA forecasts the northern lights will have a Kp index of 4, a measure of how active the lights are measured on a scale of zero to 9, indicating lights that are brighter and can be “quite pleasing to look at” from the right vantage point.
The agency said isolated minor geomagnetic storms, a type of disturbance in the Earth’s magnetosphere caused by solar winds, will persist throughout the day Saturday.
The forecast is expected to weaken after Saturday night, with the Sunday night forecast indicating the lights may be visible in fewer states.
Alaska is the state with the best chance at viewing aurora borealis Saturday night, as NOAA forecasts nearly the entire state has a high chance of a northern lights sighting. Other states with decent chances of an aurora include Montana, North Dakota and Minnesota. States within the aurora’s projected view line, the point at which likelihood of an aurora is lowest, include Washington, Idaho, South Dakota, Wisconsin, Michigan and Maine.
The NOAA's Saturday night northern lights forecast.
NOAA says the lights are most visible between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. local time. The agency recommends traveling as far north as possible, avoiding light pollution and finding a high vantage point.
National Geographic recommends using a wide-angle lens and a tripod for stability, as well as using an aperture value of 4.0 or lower. For iPhone users, night mode in the camera app can help make the northern lights pop.
The northern lights have had an especially active year between 2024 and 2025 that has far exceeded scientists’ expectations. Aurora displays hit a 500-year peak in 2024, NASA said, which the agency expects will continue throughout 2025 as the sun remains in its “solar maximum,” the period in its 11-year cycle during which solar events, like flares and coronal mass ejections, are more common. Some of the strongest solar flares in decades have been observed over the past year, including an X9.0-level flare in October, which caused northern lights to be visible as south as Florida.
NOAA is one of the agencies targeted for layoffs by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency’s efforts to cut jobs and spending across the federal government. The agency was hit with a wave of layoffs that reportedly impacted more than 800 workers in February, and is set to cut another 1,000 jobs. The layoffs have sparked protests and concern among scientists and politicians, who say the agency’s work—which includes weather forecasting, climate monitoring and coastal restoration—will be negatively impacted.
As NOAA cuts loom, scientists and industry are pushing back (The Washington Post)