Latest news with #geomagneticstorm
ABC News
2 hours ago
- Climate
- ABC News
A peak in the solar cycle means we're getting spectacular aurora australis sightings — for now
We've been treated to some stunning aurora australis light displays over the past few days, but don't expect the glow to last forever. The Sun's 11-year cycle means we're currently in the midst of an explosion of aurora activity. But that'll simmer down soon. It's a phenomenon when the sky in the Southern Hemisphere is lit up by glowing whirls of colour. You'll also hear it referred to as the southern lights. "Australis" comes from the Latin word for "southern". In the Northern Hemisphere, it's called the aurora borealis, or the northern lights. Geomagnetic storms. It's triggered by something called coronal mass ejections. "A coronal mass ejection is the literal ejection of material from the Sun out into space," Australian Space Weather Forecasting Centre (ASWFC) forecaster Andrew Jackling says. This sends charged particles from the Sun towards Earth, causing geomagnetic storms that can disrupt Earth's magnetic field. "Kind of like in a normal thunderstorm, your shutters on your house would get a bit rattled by the wind and the rain," he said. In a geomagnetic storm, the disruption can cause atoms of oxygen and nitrogen in the atmosphere to emit bright, colourful light. "There was a large solar storm on the 31st of May," Australian National University astrophysicist Brad Tucker says. "The storm was large enough to trigger a G4 storm on Earth. "The scale is 1-5, like cyclones, with G5 the largest." Here are some of the latest photos, posted to the ABC's Weather Obsessed Facebook group: While auroras are usually limited to the southernmost parts of the country, there were sightings as far north as Tamworth in New South Wales. And a big part of this is because of where we are in the solar cycle, which goes for roughly 11 years. "The current solar cycle began in 2019, since which time solar activity has generally increased as the Sun progresses toward solar maximum, which officially began in October 2024," Mr Jackling says. And that means spectacular auroras. "During solar maxima, which we are at, the Sun produces more storms, and more extreme storms," Dr Tucker says. "The activity is stronger so it is producing more of these." But it's not just the individual storm from the past few days. We've had some fairly spectacular aurora displays over the past year — check out the ABC's collection of photos from January, October, September and last July. However, the most notable aurora displays happened in May 2024, when a G5 storm hit Earth. It was the biggest geomagnetic storm we'd seen in 20 years, NASA says. While it didn't cause any catastrophic damages, the event was so big it was given a name — Gannon storm — and was the subject of a big NASA study. The solar maximum may continue for another year or two, Mr Jackling says. "By 2027, solar activity is likely to have reduced from present levels, making geomagnetic storms and subsequent auroral displays less likely to occur," he says. However, it's hard to tell exactly how long the aurora boom will last. "Every 11-year period of maximum activity varies in strength," Dr Tucker says. "Just like summers vary in how hot they are, or how wet/cold winters are, same, with the Sun, so some periods are better and others are less. "This has been a good period." No, they could still happen. "Significant space weather can occur at other times in the cycle too," Mr Jackling says. However, aurora australis activity during this time might not be visible as far north as we've been enjoying lately. So aurora chasers may have to travel much further south. "There is still an often low level of activity in the quiet years that you can get, but you need to be very near the south or north pole, which is why people make trips to the Arctic circle to see them," Dr Tucker says. Also, it's important to remember that the solar cycle means we'll come back around to another solar maximum — we'll just have to wait about a decade. Yep. "The northern and southern lights are affected equally so they will reduce as well," Dr Tucker says. However, people in the Northern Hemisphere have a better chance of seeing an aurora. "It is generally easier to see the northern lights than the southern lights due to the geographic distribution of land in the northern hemisphere, where there are more populated areas closer to the northern polar region," Mr Jackling says. "This is true at all times of the solar cycle." The ASWFC, which is part of the Bureau of Meteorology, sends out geomagnetic storm alerts via email. If you sign up to the ASWFC alerts via this online portal, you'll get an email when there's an alert.
Forbes
6 hours ago
- Climate
- Forbes
In Photos: June's ‘Great Aurora' Stuns Skywatchers Around The World
The great aurora of May 31/June 1, 2025, here looking straight up in a 360° panorama, with the ... More horizon all around and the zenith at centre. This records the entire sky during the peak of the substorm at about 1:30 am with the curtains lighting up with a range of colours blending together. A rare and powerful geomagnetic storm dazzled skywatchers across the globe last weekend, with the Northern Lights (aurora borealis) and Southern Lights (aurora australis) visible far from polar regions, with images of multi-colored curtains, coronas and rays across social media. People look at Aurora Australis, also known as the Southern Lights, as it glows on the horizon over ... More Lake Ellesmere in Lincoln on the outskirts of Christchurch on June 1, 2025. (Photo by Sanka VIDANAGAMA / AFP) (Photo by SANKA VIDANAGAMA/AFP via Getty Images) The spectacular event was triggered by a massive coronal mass ejection — a cloud of charged particles hurled into space from the sun — lit up skies in Canada, the U.S., Europe, New Zealand and beyond for over 60 hours between Saturday, May 31 to Tuesday, June 3, 2025. A man takes visuals of Aurora Australis, also known as the Southern Lights, as it glows on the ... More horizon over Lake Ellesmere in Lincoln on the outskirts of Christchurch on June 1, 2025. (Photo by Sanka VIDANAGAMA / AFP) (Photo by SANKA VIDANAGAMA/AFP via Getty Images) The spectacular event was triggered by a massive coronal mass ejection — a cloud of charged particles hurled into space from the sun — lit up skies in Canada, the U.S., Europe, New Zealand and beyond for over 60 hours between Saturday, May 31 to Tuesday, June 3, 2025. The great aurora of May 31/June 1, 2025, in a ~240° panorama from northeast at left, to ... More northwest at right, taken as a substorm was hitting, and the sky was lighting up with bright and colourful curtains. Here the curtains had moved mostly to the south, at centre here, after an initial appearance at the start of the night as a diffuse band across the north. However, moments after this as the substorm peaked, the sky filled with aurora, captured in an all-sky circular panorama. As Earth approaches the solstice on June 21, typical locations in the Northern Hemisphere where the aurora oval hangs over — such as polar latitudes near 70 degrees North — currently have no hours of darkness. That makes the U.S. currently one of the best places to see the Northern Lights. The great aurora of May 31/June 1, 2025, here with a burst of red appearing for a brief time amid ... More the curtains to the east as a substorm hit boosting the brightness and colours. On this night the Kp index peaked at Kp8, unusually high. However, to the eye the aurora still remained dimmer and colourless, except for moments like this when some reds did show up to the eye. Technical: A single 5-second exposure with the Viltrox 16mm lens at f/1.8 on the Nikon Z6III at ISO 400. A long-lasting G4 geomagnetic storm, it was one of the most vivid displays of aurora in Solar Cycle 25, which is currently in its solar maximum period. The sun has an 11-14-year cycle during which its magnetic activity waxes and wanes. It wasn't, however, as powerful as the G5 geomagnetic storm last weekend that saw aurora seen from as far south as California. A man takes visuals of Aurora Australis, also known as the Southern Lights, as it glows on the ... More horizon over Lake Ellesmere in Lincoln on the outskirts of Christchurch on June 1, 2025. (Photo by Sanka VIDANAGAMA / AFP) (Photo by SANKA VIDANAGAMA/AFP via Getty Images) The long display was initially triggered by a powerful M8.2-class solar flare on May 31, which launched a fast-moving 'halo CME' — an Earth-directed coronal mass ejection. It began interacting with Earth's magnetosphere early on June 1, triggering a G4 (Severe) geomagnetic storm, with the Kp index peaking at 8 — high enough to expand the auroral oval well into mid- and low-latitude regions. The great aurora of May 31/June 1, 2025, here with particularly colourful curtains to the east as a ... More substorm hit boosting the brightness and colours. On this night the Kp index peaked at Kp8, unusually high. However, to the eye the aurora still remained dimmer and colourless, except for moments like this when some reds did show up to the eye. This is a wide-angle lens framing from the horizon to near the zenith at top. Technical: A single 5-second exposure with the Viltrox 16mm lens at f/1.8 on the Nikon Z6III at ISO 800. In the U.S., aurora was seen as far south as southern Nebraska, Missouri, and even parts of New Mexico. States including Oregon, Wyoming, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, and Massachusetts also witnessed views of the aurora. According to auroras were captured on the Gulf Coast at latitude 30 degrees North — a very rare event that reflects the storm's exceptional intensity. This photo taken on June 1, 2025 shows the aurora seen at the outskirts of Canberra, Australia. ... More (Photo by Chu Chen/Xinhua via Getty Images) Outside North America, both aurora borealis and aurora australis were seen in abundance. Canada experienced sky-filling displays, while colorful Southern Lights were seen from southern Australia, Tasmania and New Zealand. The geomagnetic storm began to wane on June 2, but minor (G1) to strong (G3) storms persisted into June 3, keeping high-latitude skywatchers on alert. The Aurora borealis, commonly known as the northern lights, is seen at Cleveland Dam Park on June ... More 03, 2025 in North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. (Photo by) The Northern Lights are a result of the solar wind, which consists of charged particles emitted by the sun that interact with Earth's magnetic field. While much of this solar wind is deflected by the magnetic field, some charged particles travel along the magnetic field lines toward the polar regions where they enter. These particles collide with and excite oxygen and nitrogen atoms, causing them to release energy as light. This photo taken on June 1, 2025 shows a view of aurora and a dashing meteor in Jixian County of ... More Shuangyashan City, northeast China's Heilongjiang Province. (Photo by Han Yang/Xinhua via Getty Images) Wishing you clear skies and wide eyes.
Digital Trends
a day ago
- General
- Digital Trends
Astronaut's video shows aurora burst into life over Earth
In case it's escaped your attention, there's been a surge of interest in aurora just recently after a powerful geomagnetic storm — caused by a huge blast from the sun — reached Earth at the beginning of this month. Aurora occur when charged particles from the solar wind interact with Earth's magnetic field and atmosphere, leading to the formation of spectacular ribbons of light in the upper atmosphere. The best place to view aurora are from locations within or close to the Arctic Circle, with parts of Norway, Sweden, and Canada particularly famous for offering stunning views. Recommended Videos The International Space Station (ISS), 250 miles above Earth, is also an ideal spot to view the dramatic light show, although admittedly the facility is out of bounds for most of us. One lucky inhabitant, NASA astronaut Anne McClain, has just shared a breathtaking video (below) showing an aurora burst into life as the space station orbited Earth. 'Auroras from space always draw crewmembers to the Cupola,' McClain said, referencing the seven-window module that offers the station's best views of Earth and beyond. 'I love how this one illuminated our Dragon [spacecraft], and I also love the dance of satellites on the left in the latter part of the video. It's interesting how the aurora creeps along the top of the atmosphere as it comes up over the horizon.' Having witnessed the sublime beauty of this particular aurora, McClain said that she's now 'added traveling to see auroras from Earth to my bucket list!' Auroras from space always draw crewmembers to the Cupola. I love how this one illuminated our Dragon, and I also love the dance of satellites on the left in the latter part of the video. It's interesting how the aurora creeps along the top of the atmosphere as it comes up over… — COL Anne McClain (@AstroAnnimal) June 2, 2025 NASA astronauts staying aboard the ISS for up to half a year are pretty much guaranteed to witness at least one aurora. For many of them, it can be the most memorable moment during their time in orbit. Jasmin Moghbeli, who returned from the ISS last year, said after witnessing an aurora: 'Every single time I'm amazed at how alive and beautiful our planet is.' And check out this remarkable image of an aurora, captured in 2023 by the now-retired NASA astronaut Scott Kelly, who described the phenomenon as 'absolutely unreal.'
CBS News
a day ago
- Climate
- CBS News
The northern lights could be visible in some U.S. states tonight. Here's where to see the auroras.
What are the northern lights? What are the northern lights? What are the northern lights? The northern lights may be visible in parts of the U.S. tonight following weekend solar storms, forecasters said. The sun burped out a huge burst of energy called a coronal mass ejection last week, prompting space weather forecasters to issue a rare, severe solar storm alert on Sunday. Another one headed toward Earth on Monday could produce more aurora sightings. The northern lights could be visible in Alaska, Washington, Montana, North Dakota, Minnesota, Michigan, Maine, northern parts of Idaho, Wyoming, Iowa, New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont and New Hampshire. NOAA's map shows its forecast for the northern lights for Monday, June 2, 2025. NOAA What are the northern lights? 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. Last spring, the strongest geomagnetic storm in two decades slammed Earth, producing light displays across the Northern Hemisphere. And last fall, a powerful solar storm dazzled skygazers far from the Arctic Circle when dancing lights appeared in unexpected places, including New England and New York City. Auroras, 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. Northern lights (Aurora Borealis) illuminate the sky in Fairbanks, Alaska, on March 27, 2025. Hasan Akbas/Anadolu via Getty Images Every 11 years, its poles swap places, causing magnetic twists and tangles along the way. Severe storms are capable of scrambling radio and GPS communications. 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 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.
New York Times
a day ago
- Climate
- New York Times
Where Were the Northern Lights We Were Promised?
The forecast looked promising for the northern lights to be visible across much of the United States on Sunday night. From Michigan to Washington State and as far south as Alabama, people expected to be able to look up and see a light show, according to data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. But the geomagnetic storm that was expected to make the lights visible across such a wide swath of the country weakened, and instead of a light show, many got a lesson in how storms can change course. Sometimes the storms come as predicted, and sometimes the forecast changes. What happened on Sunday night? The northern lights display, also known as the aurora borealis, is set off by geomagnetic storms, which are caused by coronal mass ejections, or eruptions of materials on the sun's surface. On Sunday morning, the storm forecast for Sunday night was rated as severe enough for people to start chasing the aurora borealis. Some people in northern Europe, Wyoming and Canada did report seeing the northern lights on Sunday night. But the storm weakened, disappointing people elsewhere who had hoped to see a show. The magnetic orientation of a geomagnetic storm can change 'in a minute's notice,' and the energy transfer can become less efficient, said Lt. Cmdr. Bryan R. Brasher, a project manager at the Space Weather Prediction Center at NOAA. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
