Get ready for a northern light show of potentially epic proportions.
Some lucky stargazers in the United States may catch a glimpse of the aurora borealis after the sun unleashed the second largest solar flare in seven years on Tuesday.
These are meteorological fireworks — caused by an interaction between… Earth’s magnetic field and supercharged particles From the Sun – It will reportedly be visible across the northern United States on Friday, October 4 and Saturday, Forbes reported.
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the northern lights will be “most visible” Friday night in Alaska and Canada.
However, the polar rainbow is expected to overlap parts of the contiguous United States, including Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine.
Although generally viewed from a more northerly location, it will be visible in areas outside its usual range after the Sun erupts with two flares, including an X-class solar flare — the “most powerful of its kind.”
The supercharged solar explosion, emanating from sunspot AR3842, registered a magnitude of X7.1, making it the second most powerful explosion in the past seven years after the monster that reached a magnitude of
It’s also a coronal mass ejection (CME) – when plasma and magnetic particles explode from the surface of the Sun – which is said to cause geomagnetic storms.
Forbes reported that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration originally predicted that storms would decrease from Thursday into Saturday, but now says they will extend into Sunday.
They have also been upgraded to powerful G3 storms – the third strongest After G4 and G5 – which has the potential to affect navigation systems, power grids and even satellite communications.
The result is that more powerful geomagnetic storms generally produce brighter nor’easters, like the glowing light show that occurred in the wake of the Category 5 geomagnetic event in May.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) currently expects the Kp index for tonight to be 5, on a scale of zero to 9, indicating that there will be more aurora movement (variegated colors streaking across the sky) as the lights become brighter.
It will be “a lot of fun to look at,” provided the weather is good and stargazers are in the “right place,” according to the weather service.
Experts advise aurora watchers to catch a glimpse of the lights when they are most active between 10pm and 2am
Viewers are also advised to venture as close to the poles as possible, avoid city lights and other pollution and choose a hilltop or other prime vantage point from which to look out.
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