Missed Friday's Northern Lights? The best cities in the US to see them after 'extreme' solar storm

Release time：2024-06-03 15:50:16 Source：Worldly Watch news portal

After a rare G5 level geomagnetic storm swept across the Northern Hemisphere, residents of select US cities may have the opportunity to witness the breathtaking spectacle of the northern lights.

Those who were fortunate enough to witness the northern lights Friday night may have another opportunity to view them on Saturday, according to NOAA.

Weather permitting, states spanning from Washington and Oregon to Ohio, Pennsylvania, Colorado, and extending as far south as Missouri, stand a chance to experience the mesmerizing spectacle Saturday night. 

The aurora may also be visible in states including, Nebraska, Indiana and even New York - however, visibility will depend on various factors. 

There’s a solid chance of viewing the aurora in Minnesota on Saturday and Sunday nights - and even on Monday and overnight Tuesday, but it will likely be less intense. 

'Overnight, aurora were visible across much of the United States. Weather permitting, they may be visible again tonight,' the Space Weather Prediction Center said on Saturday morning.

The Aurora Borealis, also known as the Northern Lights, is visible over Ann Arbor, Mich., early Saturday, May, 11

Places as far south as Alabama and parts of Northern California were expected to see the aurora borealis, also known as the northern lights from a powerful geomagnetic storm that reached Earth

Kathryn Richer (left) and her friend Andrea gaze upon the Northern Lights at Chanticleer Point Lookout on the Columbia River Gorge in the early morning hours of May 11, 2024 in Latourell, Oregon

People view the northern lights, or aurora borealis, as they glow over Lake Washington, in Renton, Wash.

Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis), also known as aurora, colorful lights shift, illuminate the sky in Rochester, New York

Residents of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut are advised to seek darker viewing spots away from city lights, such as beaches or parks, to maximize their chances of witnessing the spectacle. However, individuals in upstate New York and rural areas are more likely to enjoy unobstructed views, contingent upon weather conditions.

The storm could produce northern lights as far south in the US as Alabama and Northern California, according to NOAA. 

However, experts caution that it is difficult to predict and the aurora displays may not resemble the dramatic spectacle featuring those bright vibrant colors often associated with the northern lights - but more like splashes of greenish hues. 

NOAA alerted operators of power plants and spacecraft in orbit, as well as the Federal Emergency Management Agency, to take precautions.

'For most people here on planet Earth, they won't have to do anything,' said Rob Steenburgh, a scientist with NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center to the Associated Press.  

'That's really the gift from space weather: the aurora,' Steenburgh said to the AP. He and his colleagues said the best aurora views may come from phone cameras, which are better at capturing light than the naked eye.

The northern lights glow in the sky over St. Croix State Forest near Markville, Minn., late Friday, May 10

Brilliant purple, green, yellow and pink hues of the Northern Lights were reported worldwide, with sightings in Germany, Switzerland, London, and the United States and Canada

The northern lights glow in the sky over St. Croix State Forest near Markville, Minn., late Friday, May 10

The northern lights glow in the sky over St. Croix State Forest near Markville, Minn., late Friday

A person takes a photo of Aurora Borealis or the Northern Lights in Vancouver, B.C., Saturday, May 11

The most intense solar storm in recorded history, in 1859, prompted auroras in central America and possibly even Hawaii. 'We are not anticipating that' but it could come close, NOAA space weather forecaster Shawn Dahl said.

This storm poses a risk for high-voltage transmission lines for power grids, not the electrical lines ordinarily found in people's homes, Dahl told reporters. 

Satellites also could be affected, which in turn could disrupt navigation and communication services here on Earth.

An extreme geomagnetic storm in 2003, for example, took out power in Sweden and damaged power transformers in South Africa.

Even when the storm is over, signals between GPS satellites and ground receivers could be scrambled or lost, according to NOAA. But there are so many navigation satellites that any outages should not last long, Steenburgh noted.

The sun has produced strong solar flares since Wednesday, resulting in at least seven outbursts of plasma.

Each eruption, known as a coronal mass ejection, can contain billions of tons of plasma and magnetic field from the sun's outer atmosphere, or corona.

The flares seem to be associated with a sunspot that's 16 times the diameter of Earth, NOAA said. It is all part of the solar activity ramping up as the sun approaches the peak of its 11-year cycle.

NASA said the storm posed no serious threat to the seven astronauts aboard the International Space Station. The biggest concern is the increased radiation levels, and the crew could move to a better shielded part of the station if necessary, according to Steenburgh.

Increased radiation also could threaten some of NASA's science satellites. Extremely sensitive instruments will be turned off, if necessary, to avoid damage, said Antti Pulkkinen, director of the space agency's heliophysics science division.

Several sun-focused spacecraft are monitoring all the action.

'This is exactly the kinds of things we want to observe,' Pulkkinen said.

The anticipation surrounding this astronomical event has been set off by captivating images of the aurora from Europe, where the phenomenon has been trending on social media platforms. 

Many in the U.K. shared phone snaps of the lights on social media early Saturday, with the phenomenon seen as far south as London and southern England. 

NORTHAMPTONSHIRE: Hugh Hall snapped this pic of the lights at Great Brington, Northamptonshire, at around midnight

DARTMOOR: Cameron Grankish snapped this extraordinary pic of the light over Bowerman's Nose, Dartmoor

LEICESTERSHIRE: John Middleditch snapped this incredible pic of the Old John Tower in Bradgate Park, Leicestershire being lit up by the lights

YORKSHIRE: Vanessa Adams snapped this beautiful pic of the aurora in east Yorkshire

EASTBOURNE: Luke Rogers had a perfect view of the lights from his flat near Sovereign Harbour in Eastbourne

KENT: Jane Charman snapped this beautiful shot of an eighteenth century gastro pub opposite her 17th century barn in the village of Matfield in Kent 

PETERSFIELD: The northern lights can be seen in this pic taken from Butser Hill, Petersfield, and sent in by Becky James

EDINBURGH: The National Monument of Scotland, on Calton Hill in Edinburgh was lit up by the northern lights last night

EDINBURGH: This pic of the Nelson Monument also on Calton Hill was sent in by Marcus Fox 

ESSEX: Victoria Kreisher snapped this pic while out for drive in Barling Magna, Essex

BEDFORDSHIRE: Penny Oakley sent in this delightful shot of her cat enjoying the light show in Stevington, Bedfordshire

EASTBOURNE: Luke Rogers went down to the beach on Sovereign Harbor in Eastbourne to get this great snap of the lights

DARTMOOR: Cameron Grankish snapped this extraordinary pic of the light over Bowerman's Nose, Dartmoor

PETERSFIELD: Becky James also snapped this pic of the lights from Butser Hill in Petersfield

There were sightings 'from top to tail across the country,' said Chris Snell, a meteorologist at the Met Office, Britain's weather agency. He added that the office received photos and information from other European locations including Prague and Barcelona.

Also known as aurora borealis, the bands of pink and green light were seen across the UK and in parts of Europe after an 'extreme' geomagnetic storm caused them to be more visible, according to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

Pictures shared by MailOnline readers from last night's light show revealed large swathes of the country from Teesside to the Isle of Wight draped in a spectacular fluorescent hue.

And for those unlucky enough to miss out on the spectacle - fear not - as experts have revealed the Aurora will light up Britain skies again tonight in northern parts of the UK, including Scotland, Northern Ireland and the far north of England.

However, you'll need need to prepare to lose a few winks of sleep as they will likely only be able to be seen from around 10.30 pm or 11 pm 'when it gets really dark'. 

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