Dancing waves of light, also called aurora borealis, could appear in 30 states, stretching all the way from Washington state to New Jersey.
Millions of Americans might be able to catch a glimpse of the northern lights late Sunday and Monday following a solar flare and a Controlled Mass Ejection in recent days.
NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center tweeted a “full-halo” CME, a large expulsion of plasma and magnetic field from the Sun’s corona, occurred Friday, explaining it was likely to cause “minor” to “moderate” geomagnetic storming on Sunday and Monday.
As a result, dancing waves of light, also called aurora borealis, could appear in 30 states, stretching all the way from Washington state to New Jersey.
However, where exactly the lights will surface remains uncertain.
“Based on current data, we’ve moved our possible Northern Lights viewing farther south. A moderate, strong, or severe geomagnetic storm is possible. Aurora viewing is likely in the United States tonight as Earth is impacted by a strong solar storm,” according to a tweet from Space Weather Watch.
The most favorable cloud conditions, according to the account, appear to be over the Midwest, Plains and parts of the Great Lakes. Conditions seem to be less favorable in other areas like the Northeast and Northwest.
If you’re interested in seeing the lights, you’ll want to put your eyes toward the sky between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m., according to NOAA. For the best chance to see the show, residents are urged to get to dark areas, away from city lights, and to find a location with a clear view of the northern sky.
Forecasters say that solar weather is notoriously tricky to predict, and that forecasts could change quickly, so be sure to keep an eye on the NBC 5 app for all the latest updates from NASA and the National Weather Service.
Source: NBC Chicago
