Alison R. in Victoria showing the aurora in September 2024. Photograph
(Fox 9) – Two major solar flares in recent days set the stage for the Northern Lights visible next week.
What do we know?
This week, the NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center detected two solar flares that triggered two Earth-directed coronal mass ejections. The second of the two, detected on Thursday, was rated as an X9.0 flare — the strongest solar flare detected in about seven years.
Both events are expected to trigger geomagnetic storms in Earth’s atmosphere, fueling the aurora.
What to expect
NOAA is forecasting G3 (or stronger) geomagnetic storms Thursday, Friday and Saturday. That means the Northern Lights will be visible as far south as central Iowa by the weekend.
This storm is the result of the first sunlight. It is unclear how the second flare will affect Earth.
The second coronal mass ejection takes a few days to reach Earth. If things go as expected, the second flare could produce an even stronger storm early next week — which could mean even more vibrant northern lights.
Helping aurora seekers, skies are clear Thursday night and we’re past the new moon phase — meaning viewing conditions will be favorable.
Tips for viewing the Northern Lights
NOAA recommends the following tips for the best chance of seeing the Northern Lights.
- Go north.
- Go to areas with less light pollution. You can use This map Find the best places near you.
- Often, the best times to see the aurora are around midnight.
- Spring and fall are often the best times to see the aurora because “subtleties in the way the solar wind interacts with Earth’s magnetosphere” can create large geomagnetic storms.
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