Like cheerleaders in the US ring in the new year and fireworks, another dazzling display can light up the night sky: the northern lights.
The Sun released two plasma jets earlier this week that were due to arrive on Tuesday and Wednesday, creating astronomical events in several US states.
People in Alaskawashington, Montana, North DakotaSouth Dakota, MinnesotaWisconsin, Michigan, New HampshireVermont is Maine they can see the northern lights.
Oregon State, IdahoWyoming, Iowa and New York can have ideas.
To watch this show, wait for the sky to get dark and then go outside, away from the bright city lights.
Photography with a cell phone camera can also reveal views of the aurora that are not visible to the naked eye.
But if you miss them on New Year’s Eve, it’s possible that the natural light show will be visible again after nightfall on New Year’s Day.
A strong geomagnetic storm watch is in effect on Earth today, and it may cause spectacular aurora to be seen in several northern regions.
From December 28th to the 29th, the sun produces a lot of ‘activity,’ including coronal mass ejections (CMEs), or large bursts of plasma and magnetic fields from the very outer reaches of the sun’s atmosphere.
These CEMs are expected to produce retrograde geomagnetic storms, which are disturbances in the Earth’s magnetosphere that can also cause radio blackouts and disrupt satellites.
Auroras, or bands of visible light, that surround the Earth’s tropical regions are also due to the abundance of these particles.
The first CME is expected to arrive sometime this morning or later today and trigger a G3, or ‘dangerous,’ geomagnetic storm.
The second one will arrive sometime tomorrow. Current models suggest it will produce a G1, or ‘minor,’ hurricane, but experts are also assessing the possibility that its strength could be slightly stronger, similar to a G2, or ‘moderate’ hurricane.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) will not know when the northern lights will appear or how strong they will be until CMEs are within a million miles of Earth, or 30 to 60 minutes before they destroy our planet.
This is not the first time the northern lights have been involved appeared in the US this year.
This sun is currently in the solar maximum, at the peak of its 11-year cycle when the sun’s magnetic field reverses and its activity increases.
As a result, 2024 has seen an increase in CMEs, flares and other solar events. Many of these CMEs collide with Earth to create spectacular aurora displays.
To see the northern lights, you’ll want to choose a viewing spot that’s away from city lights or other sources of pollution.
In May, for example, a strong geomagnetic storm brought the northern lights to southern states like Florida, Texas and Virginia.
This was unprecedented, because the aurora borealis is usually found around the north, and they don’t tend to go to those lower regions.
The severe geomagnetic storm predicted for today could have other effects, too.
Disruption of the Earth’s magnetic field can also disrupting technology and infrastructure, such as satellites, radio communications and the power grid.
But the effects should be small, NOAA said.
The agency will provide updates on the time, location and shape of the aurora as the CME approaches Earth.
But it looks like New Year’s Eve will have some extra celebrations to close out the amazing year of solar events.
