In Photos: See Jaw-Dropping Northern Lights Across Planet On ...
10 October 2024, Brandenburg, Lietzen: Northern lights glow in the night sky above a road in eastern ... [+] Brandenburg. Photo: Patrick Pleul/dpa (Photo by Patrick Pleul/picture alliance via Getty Images)
dpa/picture alliance via Getty ImagesRed and green Northern Lights have been seen across the U.S. and the world from regions that rarely see displays after one of the most powerful geomagnetic storms in the last twenty years.
Here are some of the best photos of this rare and spectacular aurora borealis (Northern Lights) and aurora australis (Southern Lights) event from across the globe:
10 October 2024, Brandenburg, Lietzen: Northern lights shine in the night sky over the landscape in ... [+] eastern Brandenburg. Photo: Patrick Pleul/dpa (Photo by Patrick Pleul/picture alliance via Getty Images)
dpa/picture alliance via Getty ImagesEvery U.S. state save for Hawaii glimpsed an aurora borealis display overnight on Thursday, Oct.11, through Friday, Oct. 12, while all of Europe — as far south as Turkey — and China also witnessed the event.
Aurora borealis, or northern lights, produced by a solar geomagnetic storm are seen over Washington, ... [+] DC on October 10, 2024. (Photo by Lucie AUBOURG / AFP) (Photo by LUCIE AUBOURG/AFP via Getty Images)
AFP via Getty ImagesWith the storm still ongoing in the U.S., those with clear skies should head outside. Be patient; substorms are being predicted for the rest of the night. Monitor NOAA’s Aurora Dashboard, specifically for its 30-minute forecast and X account.
Northern lights (Aurora Borealis) illuminate the sky in Bozkurt district, Kastamonu, Turkiye on ... [+] October 11, 2024. (Photo by Umit Yorulmaz/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Anadolu via Getty ImagesA G4 (Severe) and possibly even more potent geomagnetic storm occurred after a particularly fast-moving coronal mass ejection — a cloud of charged particles from the sun — erupted from the sun on Oct. 8 in the wake of the strongest solar flare in the current solar cycle.
Aurora borealis, or northern lights, illuminate the sky over the Jinshanling Great Wall on October ... [+] 11, 2024 in Daqing, Heilongjiang Province of China. A strong geomagnetic storm hit the Earth earlier on October 11th, prompting the northern lights to stretch far south. (Photo by VCG/VCG via Getty Images)
VCG via Getty ImagesThat CME moved at 2.5 million miles per hour, according to NOAA. “It’s the fastest CME we have measured in this solar cycle thus far,” said Shawn Dahl, Service Co-ordinator at NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center, in a press briefing on Wednesday.
The Northern Lights appear in the sky during a geomagnetic storm on October 10, 2024 in White Lake, ... [+] North Carolina. (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images)
Getty ImagesThe National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration published a forecast for a G4 (Severe) geomagnetic storm for both Thursday and Friday, though the latest prediction is for the aurora to be visible at low latitudes only in the early hours of Friday, Oct. 11.
The aurora borealis light up the night sky behind the Reculver Towers and Roman Fort on October 11, ... [+] 2024 in Herne Bay, United Kingdom. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)
Getty ImagesThat proved correct, with displays of aurora — including vast red pillars — waxing and waning throughout the night, varying in intensity and occasionally reaching severe storm conditions.
TOPSHOT - The Aurora Australis, also known as the Southern Lights, glows on the horizon across ... [+] Australian skies near Fish Creek, south of Melbourne, 11 October 2024 (Photo by Paul CROCK / AFP) (Photo by PAUL CROCK/AFP via Getty Images)
AFP via Getty ImagesThe CME struck Earth at 11:17 a.m. EDT (1517 GMT), disrupting the Earth's magnetic field and quickly achieving G4 (severe) geomagnetic storm conditions at 12:57 p.m. EDT (1657 GMT), according to NOAA.
A photographer takes pictures of the aurora borealis, or northern lights, produced by a solar ... [+] geomagnetic storm as seen from Shenandoah National Park in Rileyville, Virginia, on October 10, 2024. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP) (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)
AFP via Getty ImagesNOAA warned on Oct. 10 that the upcoming severe geomagnetic storm conditions disrupt satellite communications, power grids and GPS services, possibly affecting ongoing recovery efforts for Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton.
The Aurora Borealis lights up the night sky over Pitstone Windmill in Buckinghamshire on October 10, ... [+] 2024 in Pitstone, United Kingdom. The Aurora Borealis or "Northern Lights" results from geomagnetic storms and can be seen as far south as the UK overnight on the 10th October. (Photo by Jim Dyson/Getty Images)
Getty ImagesAlthough G4 storms can generally be seen as far south as Alabama and northern California, at least a faint photographic aurora was visible from most U.S. states.
The displays caused a spike in the Kp index, whic indicates the level of geomagnetic activity around Earth. During the night it reached Kp 9 — the highest there is — which NOAA defines as aurora moving towards the equator to become very bright and active.
Northern lights shine in the night sky over the Black Lake in eastern Brandenburg. Photo: Patrick ... [+] Pleul/dpa (Photo by Patrick Pleul/picture alliance via Getty Images)
dpa/picture alliance via Getty Images"These are the events that create the best aurora, and the extended auroral oval will be observable by most people," states NOAA's website. "At these levels, the aurora may be seen directly overhead from the northern states of the U.S."
An aurora borealis from the Castelltallat astronomical observatory, on October 10, 2024, in ... [+] Catelltallat, Barcelona, Catalonia (Spain). Last May, the northern lights were seen in some areas of the peninsula, surprising the inhabitants of several cities. The sky was tinged with pink, green and blue tones, and possibly during the nights of Friday, October 11, to Sunday, October 13, there may be perfect conditions to enjoy this natural spectacle again. (Photo By Lorena Sopena/Europa Press via Getty Images)
Europa Press via Getty ImagesGeomagnetic activity is at its strongest for 20 years because the sun is close to a particularly intense "solar maximum" — the peak of its 11 year solar cycle — and also close to the equinox, when Earth’s axis is tilted side-on to the sun.
An aurora borealis, also known as the northern lights, is seen Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in Falmouth, ... [+] Maine. (AP Photo/David Sharp)
Associated PressNOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center's latest forecast has the sun reaching solar maximum between August 2024 and January 2025, though on Tuesday, Oct. 8, NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center and NASA announced that a media teleconference for Tuesday, Oct. 15, to discuss the sun’s activity and the progression of Solar Cycle 25.
An aurora borealis, also known as the northern lights, glows in the night sky above apartment ... [+] buildings in the Queens borough of New York, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Daniel P. Derella)
Associated PressMore frequent and powerful geomagnetic storms, leading to intense and widely observable Northern Lights, are expected to continue through 2026.
Wishing you clear skies and wide eyes.
