On Friday, a huge "hole" in the sun could blast spectacular displays of the
Northern Lights into the skies over the most northern US states.
As a torrent of electrically charged particles known as "solar wind"
strikes the poles and interacts with molecules in the atmosphere, the aurora
borealis may show in skies from Washington to New York, illuminating the
night with stunning hues.
A prediction from the Space Weather Prediction Center indicates that the
Northern Lights, which are usually only visible closer to the Arctic Circle,
may move further south as powerful solar winds approach, illuminating the
heavens with stunning hues.
The aurora prediction for Friday indicated a "Kp index" of 6 as of
Wednesday morning. That represents a gauge of the Northern Lights' power.
According to the below picture, the aurora may appear midway between the
green and yellow lines:
These stellar gusts are emanating from the sun's enormous coronal
hole.
Contrary to what you may have assumed, the large black area is not a hole.
Instead, it's a region of the corona, the sun's extremely heated exterior
layer, that is cooler than the area around it and is therefore not shining
as brightly.
According to Alex Young, the assistant director for science at NASA
Goddard's Heliophysics Science Division, this one is enormous—roughly the
size of 20 to 30 Earths lined up back-to-back.
Strong, fast solar winds were launched into space in the direction of Earth
as that enormous crater expanded across the corona. The atmosphere protects
us from these winds, and they aren't strong enough to knock out electricity
or radio stations like some previous intense solar storms have.
The Space Weather Prediction Center on Friday issued a warning for a
moderate geomagnetic storm due to the impending eruption of solar
particles.
When those fast electrons strike Earth, magnetic field confusion results.
They are directed toward the North and South Poles by the magnetic field of
our globe, where they produce a stunning, ethereal radiance. Power networks,
communication, and GPS systems can be affected by stronger geomagnetic
storms.
However, calm geomagnetic disturbances are less dangerous. The aurora
lights have previously been pushed as far south as New York and Idaho.
