The Aurora Borealis, typically witnessed only in the most northern areas during the most frigid winter periods, could be observable in 15 U.S. states Thursday night, scientists conveyed.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced a geomagnetic disturbance watch for Thursday, which is the cause for the Northern Lights’ atypical geographical visibility.
The disturbance has triggered a sequence of Coronal Mass Ejections from the sun, which are the reason for the creation of the northern lights upon interacting with the Earth’s atmosphere, resulting in a vaporous, continually changing, multicolored yet unpredictable phenomenon in a clear sky.
The solar disturbances mold the Earth’s magnetosphere, and have brought about conditions for the lights to be witnessed much further than their usual locations in recent years.
NOAA indicated what’s termed a Planetary k, or Kp, index of five for Thursday, which is relatively elevated, signifying the lights will be observable more extensively than normal for this period of year. The Kp index for Friday is three.
If the lights materialize, they are apt to be “more radiant and there will be greater auroral activity,” NOAA expressed.
A NOAA aurora prediction map displays the possibility for the lights to be seen from Alaska in the Northwest to as far south and east as Iowa in the nation’s heartland.
The strongest outcome of the solar disturbances is Thursday night leading into Friday morning, which is likewise the optimal time to observe them, according to the aurora prediction.
Sourse: www.upi.com
