Northern Lights Stretch Unusually Far South
The Northern Lights returned Tuesday night in an unusually wide display, visible as far south as Alabama and Florida and across parts of the Northeast, including Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Residents across the tri-state area captured striking photos of the aurora painting the night sky in bright pinks and greens.
What Caused the Display
Scientists traced the spectacle to a powerful coronal mass ejection (CME) from the sun. When a CME interacts with Earth's magnetic field, it can energize particles in the upper atmosphere and produce vivid auroral colors.
Best Places and Tips for Viewing
For the best experience, experts recommend heading to parks or other dark-sky locations away from city lights. Although photos often show very intense colors, the aurora can look more muted to the naked eye. Cameras — especially with long exposures and higher ISO settings — capture faint light and enhance colors that may be difficult to see without photographic settings.
"If you use precision GPS systems, there could be degradation on that. If you need to be accurate less than an inch, it could be off much more than that as this type of activity continues," said Shawn Dahl of NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center. "We've been communicating with space launch officials because of a pending launch coming up -- these can impact the electric power grid of our country."
Potential Impacts
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) monitors space weather around the clock because geomagnetic storms can affect more than just skywatchers. Possible impacts include degraded precision GPS signals, interference with some satellite operations, complications for space launches, and in extreme cases, effects on electrical grids.
Forecasters expect the storm's final and most energetic phase to arrive around midday Wednesday, which could produce even stronger auroras later that night. Viewers are encouraged to keep an eye on local space-weather forecasts and to stay safe if traveling to remote viewing spots.
Share your photos: If you photographed the aurora, consider sharing your images at 6abc.com/share.
