SACRAMENTO, Calif. — We are in a very active cycle of the sun and many disturbances are sending geomagnetic storms to Earth resulting in some disruptions of communications, but more interesting to many are the abundant and sometimes spectacular northern lights known officially as the aurora borealis.
The most visible displays begin days prior with a massive eruption on the sun known as a solar flare.
The most powerful flares are called X-Class flares and send large amounts of geomagnetic energy to the solar system. Solar scientists can observe and classify these outbursts made from fission in the sun and predict the timing and energy level sent to Earth. The impact on Earth is from Coronal Mass Ejections, or CME's for short and these storms are rated on a scale. A flare and a CME are somewhat related but still technically different.
They rate these storms on a scale from 1 to 5 with the higher numbers indicating more impacts. Geomagnetic energy can interfere with various wavelengths used for communication and power grid infrastructure.
As of Thursday morning a G3 storm has been detected with a likely chance to be upgraded to G4 at some point later. The latest forecast from the Space Weather Prediction Center is for a G4 storm set to impact North America Thursday night and very early Friday morning. There is some interaction between two storms so timing is not exact.
Where to see the northern lights tonight in Northern California
Very early forecasts that are subject to change indicate the southern extent of viewing could be as far south as Northern California and even Alabama. There are many variables that may change, but the key is to go as far north as you can and look for clear and dark skies.
The good news is we should have great clear skies Thursday night and Friday morning when the aurora will be at its maximum viewing strength.
One of the most important ways to increase your odds of seeing a rare and beautiful event is to seek out the darkest skies possible. A common mistake is to go out too early to sunset in an urban or suburban environment and assume you will see it easily. Light pollution along with obstructions like trees or houses to the north will kill any viewing experience even during the strongest geomagnetic storms.
Finally, these are rare events worth planning and making an effort to see. Most people who take extra steps to enhance their viewing are rewarded with amazing images and lifelong memories. This will be similar to the aurora in May, and may be stronger, but may also be slightly weaker as well. The key is to follow updates and then track how the aurora is coming together from earlier reports from Europe and the East Coast the night of the event.