Nature’s light show could be on full display Monday night for some northern Midwestern states.
That’s according to a geomagnetic storm warning for Monday night from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Space Weather Prediction Center.
In simpler terms, the storm could cause northern lights to be visible in areas across the northern U.S. The outbreak of northern lights comes after a coronal mass ejection launched from the Sun on Saturday is expected to arrive at Earth Monday night.
Once the ejection gets to Earth, a beautiful aurora borealis occurs, giving us a beautiful light show.
Forecasters expect the best time to see the northern lights on Monday will be between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. ET. The areas expected to have the most activity in the U.S. are the northern Midwestern states like Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin.
What is a coronal mass ejection?
A coronal mass ejection is a large plume of plasma and magnetic field that is released from the Sun during a solar flare described as an X-class solar flare. According to Space.com, these types of flares are the strongest class of solar flares. These types of ejections carry electrically charged atoms, more commonly known as ions.
These ions are what cause northern lights, as when they interact with our planet’s magnetosphere the phenomenon can happen. Gasses and ions interact in our atmosphere, making all the colors in the night sky.
What are the effects of a geomagnetic storm?
According to the NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center, storms like the one forecasted can cause voltage irregularities in power systems causing false alarms on some protection systems.
GPS systems could also have some temporary problems.
Fernando Cervantes Jr. is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach him at [email protected] and follow him on X @fern_cerv_.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Can you see the northern lights tonight? See the US forecast
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