SPOKANE, Wash. — The Northern Lights, or aurora borealis, are likely to make an appearance Friday night, and scientists at National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) say that this could be one of the strongest solar storms to hit Earth in 20 years!
Geomagnetic storms, responsible for the appearance of the aurora, are a result of Coronal Mass Ejections, or CMEs from the Sun sending waves of electrified gas particles toward the Earth. In the past 24-36 hours, NOAA observed 5 or 6 of these CMEs in quick succession. Models simulate that this could create a tidal wave of these charged particles which would amplify the intensity of the Northern Lights as a whole.
In other words, this will likely be a stronger and more widely visible Northern Lights event.
The Space Weather Prediction Center, SWPC (a branch of NOAA), put out a Severe Geomagnetic Storm Watch for the first time since 2005. And at 11 a.m. Pacific Time, they observed and confirmed that "severe" levels of the storm have arrived. The aurora is measured using the Kp index, which is a scale of 0-9. Severe is considered an 8 or above.
Can we see the Northern Lights in eastern Washington and North Idaho tonight?
Absolutely! The weather forecast is for clear skies all night long. As so long as the solar storm is active at night, we're in a prime position to view a more luminous event than normal. Initial forecasts have the best hours for viewing between 10 p.m. and midnight Friday night. Though the aurora may be active through Saturday night as well.
The only thing to remember is that you'll have to get away from the city lights and light pollution overall. For the Inland Northwest, this means getting away from the metro corridor, at least 20 miles outside of the I-90 stretch from Airway Heights, WA to Coeur d'Alene, ID. The more rural the better and many advise being near a lake to experience perfectly dark conditions!
And as a bonus, there's no moon in the sky tonight as it's in its New Phase. Perfect!
Best of luck everyone!
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