ReportWire

Tag: auroras

  • What are northern lights? Here’s what to know about auroras.

    [ad_1]

    Space weather forecasters issued an alert on Tuesday for incoming severe solar storms that could produce colorful northern lights and temporarily disrupt communications.And the aurora borealis didn’t disappoint, showing up in various parts of the country.In the video player above: Photos show auroras seen in the skies of Nelson County and Virginia Beach, Virginia; South Dakota; Iowa; and Minnesota on Tuesday night.In the past few days, the sun has burped out several bursts of energy called coronal mass ejections that, earlier, forecasters said could reach Earth Tuesday night and early Wednesday. Forecasters warned that geomagnetic storms could disrupt radio and GPS communications, according to forecasters with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.How bright the auroras were and how far south they were visible were dependent on when the solar bursts got here and how they interacted with Earth’s atmosphere. How northern lights happenThe sun is at the maximum phase of its 11-year activity cycle, making the light displays more common and widespread. Colorful northern lights have decorated night skies in unexpected places and space weather experts say there are more auroras still to come.Aurora displays known as the northern and southern lights are commonly visible near the poles, where charged particles from the sun interact with Earth’s atmosphere.Skygazers are spotting the lights deeper into the United States and Europe because the sun is going through a major face-lift. Every 11 years, its poles swap places, causing magnetic twists and tangles along the way.Last year, the strongest geomagnetic storm in two decades slammed Earth, producing light displays across the Northern Hemisphere. And soon afterward, a powerful solar storm dazzled skygazers far from the Arctic Circle when dancing lights appeared in unexpected places, including Germany, the United Kingdom, New England and New York City.The sun’s active spurt is expected to last at least through the end of this year, though when solar activity will peak won’t be known until months after the fact, according to NASA and NOAA.How solar storms affect EarthSolar storms can bring more than colorful lights to Earth.When fast-moving particles and plasma slam into Earth’s magnetic field, they can temporarily disrupt the power grid. Space weather can also interfere with air traffic control, radio and satellites in orbit. Severe storms are capable of scrambling other radio and GPS communications.In 1859, a severe solar storm triggered auroras as far south as Hawaii and set telegraph lines on fire in a rare event. And a 1972 solar storm may have detonated magnetic U.S. sea mines off the coast of Vietnam.Space weather experts aren’t able to predict a solar storm months in advance. Instead, they alert relevant parties to prepare in the days before a solar outburst hits Earth.How to see aurorasNorthern lights forecasts can be found on NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center website or an aurora forecasting app.Consider aurora-watching in a quiet, dark area away from city lights. Experts recommend skygazing from a local or national park. And check the weather forecast because clouds can cover up the spectacle entirely.Taking a picture with a smartphone camera may also reveal hints of the aurora that aren’t visible to the naked eye.

    (VIDEO ABOVE: Tommy Stafford, John Mitchell, Matthew Dux, Matt Beatty, Ali Roux Gaudette via CNN Newsource) —

    Space weather forecasters issued an alert on Tuesday for incoming severe solar storms that could produce colorful northern lights and temporarily disrupt communications.

    And the aurora borealis didn’t disappoint, showing up in various parts of the country.

    In the video player above: Photos show auroras seen in the skies of Nelson County and Virginia Beach, Virginia; South Dakota; Iowa; and Minnesota on Tuesday night.

    In the past few days, the sun has burped out several bursts of energy called coronal mass ejections that, earlier, forecasters said could reach Earth Tuesday night and early Wednesday. Forecasters warned that geomagnetic storms could disrupt radio and GPS communications, according to forecasters with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

    How bright the auroras were and how far south they were visible were dependent on when the solar bursts got here and how they interacted with Earth’s atmosphere.

    How northern lights happen

    The sun is at the maximum phase of its 11-year activity cycle, making the light displays more common and widespread. Colorful northern lights have decorated night skies in unexpected places and space weather experts say there are more auroras still to come.

    Aurora displays known as the northern and southern lights are commonly visible near the poles, where charged particles from the sun interact with Earth’s atmosphere.

    Skygazers are spotting the lights deeper into the United States and Europe because the sun is going through a major face-lift. Every 11 years, its poles swap places, causing magnetic twists and tangles along the way.

    Last year, the strongest geomagnetic storm in two decades slammed Earth, producing light displays across the Northern Hemisphere. And soon afterward, a powerful solar storm dazzled skygazers far from the Arctic Circle when dancing lights appeared in unexpected places, including Germany, the United Kingdom, New England and New York City.

    The sun’s active spurt is expected to last at least through the end of this year, though when solar activity will peak won’t be known until months after the fact, according to NASA and NOAA.

    How solar storms affect Earth

    Solar storms can bring more than colorful lights to Earth.

    When fast-moving particles and plasma slam into Earth’s magnetic field, they can temporarily disrupt the power grid. Space weather can also interfere with air traffic control, radio and satellites in orbit. Severe storms are capable of scrambling other radio and GPS communications.

    In 1859, a severe solar storm triggered auroras as far south as Hawaii and set telegraph lines on fire in a rare event. And a 1972 solar storm may have detonated magnetic U.S. sea mines off the coast of Vietnam.

    Space weather experts aren’t able to predict a solar storm months in advance. Instead, they alert relevant parties to prepare in the days before a solar outburst hits Earth.

    How to see auroras

    Northern lights forecasts can be found on NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center website or an aurora forecasting app.

    Consider aurora-watching in a quiet, dark area away from city lights. Experts recommend skygazing from a local or national park. And check the weather forecast because clouds can cover up the spectacle entirely.

    Taking a picture with a smartphone camera may also reveal hints of the aurora that aren’t visible to the naked eye.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • The Auroras Should Be Spectacular This Summer, Thanks to Solar Maximum

    The Auroras Should Be Spectacular This Summer, Thanks to Solar Maximum

    [ad_1]

    Auroras filled much of the world’s skies for several nights in mid-May as a historic geomagnetic storm coursed 100 kilometers above our heads. Being able to see auroras so deep into the tropics was possibly a once-in-a-lifetime experience, but there will almost certainly be more strong geomagnetic storms later this year, giving hope to aurora watchers around the world that more dazzling lights are possible in the near future.

    This is because we’re quickly approaching solar maximum, the peak of our star’s predictable 11-year cycle of activity. Solar flares and coronal mass ejections, or CMEs, are more common during and just after solar maximum, and it’s these that are responsible for vivid auroras.

    The great aurora show on May 10, 2024, was the result of three CMEs that surged out of the sun’s outer atmosphere and headed toward Earth. A CME is a collection of magnetized plasma ejected from the sun’s exceptionally hot outer atmospheric layer, the corona, as a result of a disruption in the sun’s magnetic field.

    On May 10, each successive CME moved a little faster than the one before it, allowing all three bursts of charged particles to merge before washing over Earth’s atmosphere. The combined energy of three CMEs hitting our planet at once unleashed an aurora show for the ages.

    AR3664 on May 10, 2024.Photograph: NASA/SOHO

    These CMEs were associated with Active Region 3664, a collection of relatively cold and dark sunspots on the sun’s surface that grew more than 15 times larger than the Earth itself. You could see AR3664 without magnification simply by peeking up at the sun through a pair of eclipse glasses.

    It turns out that the enormity of AR3664 was a major contributor to our generational aurora display. Such spots on the solar surface often disrupt the region’s magnetic field, creating an instability and realignment that can force the release of a CME or even a powerful solar flare—a burst of electromagnetic radiation that can cause radio blackouts.

    The surface of the sun rotates every three and a half weeks or so, meaning that sunspots are only visible to Earth for a week or two, depending on where they form on the solar surface.

    [ad_2]

    Dennis Mersereau

    Source link

  • The Northern Lights Could Be Visible Across the US Thanks to a Rare Solar Storm

    The Northern Lights Could Be Visible Across the US Thanks to a Rare Solar Storm

    [ad_1]

    Three rapid bursts of charged particles that erupted toward Earth from the sun’s burning-hot outer atmosphere on Wednesday could lead to stunning auroras across a wide swath of the US and a colorful hue as far south as Florida to start the weekend.

    Traveling at more than 1.5 million miles per hour, the trio of coronal mass ejections (CMEs) have merged into one pulse of plasma and magnetic field during the 60-hour trip from the sun’s atmosphere toward our own.

    Tracking these developments, experts at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Space Weather Prediction Center issued a “severe geomagnetic storm watch” in advance of its arrival. This was the first such alert issued by the agency in nearly 20 years.

    Visible auroras are possible across much of the United States as a result of this expected storm. An event of this magnitude is also likely to cause disruptions to radios, satellites, and possibly even some power grids, though nothing most people should be concerned about.

    This weekend’s aurora potential started with a sunspot more than 10 times larger than Earth. It’s a sunspot so large, in fact, that it’s visible to the unmagnified eye through a leftover pair of eclipse glasses.

    Solar flares and CMEs are often associated with sunspots. Larger and more intense spots can lead to more frequent and more intense releases of matter from the sun’s atmosphere.

    Satellites dedicated to tracking solar activity detected the first CME rushing out of the sun’s corona around 9:00 am EDT on May 8. A second, smaller CME erupted from the same region a few hours later, followed by another burst of charged matter about eight hours after that.

    All three CMEs erupted with different intensities and speeds. The first CME was the largest and slowest of the trio, which allowed the second, faster CME to collide and merge into the first. The third CME of the bunch would eventually catch up as well, allowing all three surges of charged particles to reach Earth in a single wave about 60 hours after ejecting from the sun.

    The combined intensity of the three CMEs washing over Earth’s atmosphere at once is the driving force behind the severe geomagnetic storm.

    If everything stays on track, a memorable series of auroras could grace the skies over much of the United States during the overnight hours Friday into early Saturday morning.

    The timing of the event places the likely peak disruption in the middle of the night across the US, providing a great viewing opportunity for most of the country if the event remains on course.

    A geomagnetic storm of this intensity could make the aurora visible overhead from Seattle to Chicago to New York and Washington, DC, with auroras possible as far south as Oklahoma City and Raleigh, North Carolina. Colors may be visible on the northern horizon as far south as northern Florida.

    Folks across Europe and Asia may also see the auroras if the storm arrives during their nighttime hours. During the peak of an event of this magnitude, the northern lights could dance overhead around London, Paris, Berlin, and Moscow.

    [ad_2]

    Dennis Mersereau

    Source link