STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — The Northern Lights may be visible over New York state and other northern parts of the United States on Wednesday night.
Auroras, like those including the Northern Lights, are brilliant ribbons of light weaving across Earth’s northern or southern polar regions, according to NASA. These natural light shows are caused by magnetic storms that have been triggered by solar activity, such as solar flares or coronal mass ejections.
When a solar storm comes toward Earth, some of the energy and small particles can travel down the magnetic field lines at the north and south poles into atmosphere.
“There, the particles interact with gases in our atmosphere resulting in beautiful displays of light in the sky. Oxygen gives off green and red light. Nitrogen glows blue and purple,” according to NASA.
There is a prediction of the intensity and location of the aurora borealis on Wednesday evening over North America due to geomagnetic activity. The auroras were also visible on Tuesday night, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
The auroras could be visible over many of the northern states in the United States, including New York state.
Auroras are best seen at night, so you could try to spot them by moving away from city lights.
Wednesday night is the night before a new moon, which means the moon will only be about 2% full — providing little to no light in the sky after dark. This offers the perfect conditions to possibly spot auroras.
“Aurora can often be observed somewhere on Earth from just after sunset or just before sunrise,” stated NOAA. “The aurora is not visible during daylight hours. The aurora does not need to be directly overhead but can be observed from as much as a 1000 km away when the aurora is bright and if conditions are right.”
The best time to view auroras are usually within an hour or two around midnight — between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. local time, as geomagnetic activity increases.
If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.
Source link
