Auroras Illuminate the Night Sky Around the World

Auroras Illuminate the Night Sky Around the World
Experience the enchanting glow of auroras painting the world's night sky. Discover stunning displays from various corners of the globe.

The night sky was illuminated by the northern lights on Friday in locations where the auroras don’t normally shine, as a severe solar storm supercharged the display. Photos taken from all over the world show bright-colored skies lit up in hot pink, green, and purple across Europe, the United States, and as far as New Zealand. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Space Weather Prediction Center said Thursday that a number of solar flares and eruptions from the sun could trigger severe geomagnetic storms and “spectacular displays of aurora” on Friday and through the weekend.
Severe Geomagnetic Storm Triggers Unusual Aurora Sightings
Friday’s storm is the first severe geomagnetic storm watch the agency has issued since 2005. The northern lights appear in the sky when charged particles spew from the sun during solar storms, making colorful light displays when clouds of those particles collide with Earth’s magnetic field and interact with the atoms and molecules in Earth’s upper atmosphere. Typically, the northern lights are only seen in high latitudes, but during intense solar storms, like on Friday, they can be seen farther south than expected, with reports of sightings in Louisiana, Alabama, and Mississippi.

Maps Show Potential Aurora Visibility Across the U.S.

A map from the Space Weather Prediction Center shows the aurora may be visible for much of the northern half of the U.S. on Friday night. The National Weather Service’s St. Louis office said people in the area should leave the city for the best possible chance to view the northern lights. The prediction center notes on its website that people don’t need to be directly underneath the aurora to see it, and it can be observed from as much as 620 miles away.
The storm was expected to last through the weekend, and the prediction center released a forecast map for Saturday night. Officials said people in the southern U.S. who can’t see the aurora with their naked eyes could still take some dazzling pictures with their phones.
Aurora Sightings Reported Across Europe and the U.S.

Stunning photos showed the vivid display of the northern lights over Europe and the U.K. after nightfall on Friday. The northern lights were also visible across much of New England, including in Boston, as the powerful geomagnetic storm arrived from the sun.
The storm is categorized as a G5 — the highest on the scale — and is the most powerful since at least 2003. It brings the possibility of blackouts, but also allows the aurora borealis to be seen much farther south than usual. The lights were also visible in the skies over western Pennsylvania, as shown in photos shared by WTAE viewers.
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