The Northern Lights Are Coming Back: How to See the Aurora Borealis This Week

Skywatchers in the Northeast US, upper Midwest and states as far south as northern Oregon might be able to see the spectacular show.


Gael Cooper
July 29, 2024 5:21 p.m. PT
3 min read

If you're still hoping for another aurora borealis display to match the May 10-11 event, there's good news and bad news. The good news is that the aurora borealis, the colorful sky event commonly referred to as the northern lights, will be returning July 30-Aug. 1. There's always bad news, though, right? This northern lights display won't be as strong or as widespread as the May showing, but something is better than nothing.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Space Weather Prediction Center first posted a geomagnetic storm watch running through July 31 but later Monday extended that watch through Aug. 1.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Space Weather Prediction Center first posted a geomagnetic "A number of complex sunspot groups are present on the visible solar disk and solar activity has increased, to include an R3 (strong) solar flare Sunday evening," the center posted. "A number of (coronal mass ejections) have been associated with the increased activity, and at least four of these have anticipated Earth-directed components, with possible arrivals beginning Tuesday on into Thursday."

A coronal mass ejection is essentially a break in the sun's magnetic field, which causes an explosion that launches solar particles into space. Those solar particles are now are on their way to Earth, where they can cause a geomagnetic storm.

More:
https://www.cnet.com/science/the-northern-lights-are-coming-back-how-to-see-the-aurora-borealis-this-week/