The spectacular aurora borealis, a nighttime light display caused by solar flares that have been unusually prevalent since Friday, could be seen again across much of the United States on Sunday night as a powerful geomagnetic storm continues. There is a gender.
The Northern Lights, or northern lights, have been observed from locations farther south than usual, including much of the United States, the United Kingdom, and parts of Central America.
The green, pink and purple lights will be visible again Sunday night in areas with clear, dark skies, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Space Weather Prediction Center.
“What befalls us this late today could be quite similar to what we saw Friday into Friday night,” Space Weather Prediction Center operations chief Mike Betwee said Sunday. Told. “Our prediction is that we will reach exactly that level.”
There were reports of lights seen in parts of Puerto Rico, South Florida and Central America on Friday night, and Betowi said it could occur again Sunday night if the storm is just as intense.
He said it's difficult to predict the best time to observe the phenomenon because the aurora “comes and goes for no particular reason.”
“Generally speaking, the darker the sky, the more likely you are to see it,” Betwi says.
It becomes even more difficult to see in places with lots of bright light, such as urban areas.
Visibility may be obstructed on cloudy days. This could pose a challenge for people hoping to see the aurora borealis in the central United States, where rain and storms are expected.
Tony Fracaso, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service's Weather Prediction Center, said the best chance of clear skies will be across much of the West, from Ohio to the mid-Atlantic region, and possibly North Dakota and Minnesota. said.
New England was a “question mark,” he says.
In the UK, thunderstorms were moving north over Wales and heading towards northern England and Scotland. on sunday nightbut it was clearer in the south and east.
If you're in the middle of nowhere, take a photo or record a video with your phone. Your camera's sensor is more sensitive to the wavelengths created by the aurora borealis, so you may see a different image than what you see with the naked eye.
This weekend's show is the result of the most powerful geomagnetic storm to hit Earth since October 2003. As geomagnetic activity increases, auroras become brighter and more active, extending into areas where they are not normally seen.
The Space Weather Prediction Center rates magnetic storms on a five-point scale. On Sunday, attention was focused on the conditions for grades 4 and above.
The center said storm conditions were level 3 and 4 on Saturday, with level 5 conditions earlier in the day.
Although geomagnetic storms can affect power grids, communications and navigation systems, the Federal Emergency Management Agency said there were no significant impacts from the storm as of Sunday morning.
The Space Weather Prediction Center says the storm will continue into Monday.