Democracy Dies in Darkness

Severe solar storm triggers magnificent northern lights unusually far south

The northern lights visible across the United States after a solar flare were the most widespread and intense aurora show since a historic display in May.

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The aurora borealis lit up the skies over Edmonton, Alberta, on Sept. 16. The vibrant lights, also known as the northern lights, painted the night sky with hues of green, purple and blue. (Ron Palmer / SOPA Images/Sipa USA via AP)
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The latest in a recent run of geomagnetic storms slammed Earth on Monday night, sending auroras atypically far south in the Northern Hemisphere. Spawned by a coronal mass ejection, or wave of plasma unleashed by the sun, the storm reached level G4 or “severe” on the 1 to 5 scale for geomagnetic storms.

Viewed deep into the southern United States, it was the most widespread display of auroras since a show in May that scientists called a space spectacle of a lifetime.

Stunning northern lights were witnessed unusually far south Monday night, including in portions of Mississippi, Texas, Arizona, California and other locations at similar latitudes. It followed another G4 event last month that also produced northern lights in parts of the southern United States.

The northern lights display was vibrant enough to shine through the bright light of a supermoon that reaches totality Tuesday night.

Unfortunately, clouds obstructed the view in a number of places that would likely have otherwise caught a glimpse. Much of the Mid-Atlantic, including the D.C. area, had low visibility. Parts of the Upper Midwest, central and northern Plains and Pacific Northwest were also dealing with murky skies.

The primary cause of this northern lights episode and the others in recent months is a solar cycle heading toward peak intensity. The peak cannot be determined until after the fact, but forecasters predict it is still ahead over the next year or so, and that more intense geomagnetic storms and displays of the northern lights are probable.

The solar cycle peak is associated with an increase in sunspot numbers, and more sunspots lead to plentiful solar flare eruptions associated with magnetic disturbances that sweep past Earth. While the cycle lasts an average of 11 years, it can be as short as eight or as long as 14, according to space.com.

The coronal mass ejection (CME) that sparked the latest outburst left our sun this past weekend. It was associated with an X-class flare, the most intense kind, that hurled earthward on Sept. 14. The flare ranked as the fifth most powerful flare of the current solar cycle, according to spaceweatherlive.com.

Despite a relative glancing blow to our planet, the CME from the flare put on quite a show.

Magnetic storming is forecast to continue Tuesday, leading to the possibility of more auroras on Tuesday night, especially in higher latitudes. G2 to G3 levels were still being observed as of Tuesday morning. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration expects the storm to oscillate to G3 at times through Tuesday night, with another G4 spike possible before the storm subsides.

As we await the potential of more colorful skies, and with solar cycle peak still likely ahead, here are some of the views across North America on Monday night.

Southern U.S.

Northern U.S.

Canada and Alaska