Posted on 07/09/2023 1:07:03 PM PDT by Twotone
A solar storm forecast for Thursday is expected to give skygazers in 17 American states a chance to glimpse the Northern Lights, the colorful sky show that happens when solar wind hits the atmosphere.
Northern Lights, also known as aurora borealis, are most often seen in Alaska, Canada and Scandinavia, but an 11-year solar cycle that’s expected to peak in 2024 is making the lights visible in places farther to the south. Three months ago, the light displays were visible in Arizona, marking the third severe geomagnetic storm since the current solar cycle began in 2019.
The Geophysical Institute at the University of Alaska at Fairbanks has forecast auroral activity on Thursday in Alaska, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, New York, New Hampshire, Vermont, Indiana, Maine and Maryland.
Auroral activity also has been forecast for Canada, including Vancouver.
Light displays are expected to be visible overhead in Milwaukee, Minneapolis and Helena, Montana, and low on the horizon in Salem, Oregon.; Boise, Idaho; Cheyenne, Wyoming; Annapolis, Maryland; and Indianapolis, according to the institute.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Space Weather Prediction Center said people wanting to experience an aurora should get away from city lights and that the best viewing times are between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. local time.
Northern Lights occur when a magnetic solar wind slams into the Earth’s magnetic field and causes atoms in the upper atmosphere to glow. The lights appear suddenly and the intensity varies.
A geomagnetic index known as Kp ranks auroral activity on a scale from zero to nine, with zero being not very active and nine being bright and active. The Geophysical Institute has forecast Kp 6 for Thursday’s storm.
Climate change.
What am I looking for? And in what direction should I look?
If your at the North Pole look south. Any place else look North😄. Sorry don’t mean to be a smart-ass.
How can they be seen In Annapolis Md, but not Pennsylvania?
When they say Thursday. Is this 10pm Wed night to 2am Thursday? Or is it 10pm Thur night to 2am Fri morning?
I’m headed to Ketchikan tomorrow for a week. Be really cool if I get to see it.
Midnight sun season here in Alaska, the sky doesn’t get dark enough to see them .
I interpret it as Thursday night. But I’ll be in bed anyway.
Encouraging. The wife and I will be in Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories for three days in late August. Hoping to see them then.
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I just read a local report that says it is Wednesday night into Thursday morning. Who knows they may not be clear either.
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