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How to Observe the Northern Lights This Weekend

How to Observe the Northern Lights This Weekend
The Space Weather Prediction Center said solar activity would be high again on Saturday.
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How to Observe the Northern Lights This Weekend

The Space Weather Prediction Center said solar activity would be high again on Saturday.

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Northern Lights Glow in the Sky Amid Solar Storm

Powerful solar flare activity made the aurora borealis visible unusually far south.

[Laughing] Holy moly. I know. This — I thought it would just be over on the horizon a little — Behind us, too. Yeah. A little green on the horizon. Nothing like this. This is — This is like, ‘Oh, my god.’ Everywhere.

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Powerful solar flare activity made the aurora borealis visible unusually far south.CreditCredit...Olivier Morin/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images
Claire Moses
Published May 10, 2024Updated May 11, 2024, 2:13 p.m. ET

Keep an eye on the skies on Saturday night for what could be another dazzling display of nature — or not, depending on your location and weather conditions.

An unusual amount of solar flare activity means that the aurora borealis, or the northern lights, could continue to appear over the weekend.

The solar storm was a level 5 on Friday, which gave some star gazers a clear view of streaks of green, purple and red that arced across the skies. Those conditions are expected to continue, Mike Bettwy, the operations chief of the Space Weather Prediction Center, said on Saturday.

“It should be fairly similar to what we saw last night, maybe not as widespread but fairly close,” Mr. Bettwy said.

“Depending on how everything evolves,” he added, “tomorrow night might actually be better than tonight” for views of the aurora.

In areas with clear skies, the display on Sunday could be similar to what people witnessed on Friday.

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