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You have a chance to see the Northern Lights in the South this weekend due to rare solar event

By WSBTV.com News Staff

NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory captured this image of an X2.2 solar flare on May 9, 2024 NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory captured this image of an X2.2 solar flare – as seen in the bright flash in the lower center – on May 9, 2024. The image shows 131 Angstrom light, a subset of extreme ultraviolet light, colorized red. (Credit: NASA/SDO)

By WSBTV.com News Staff

ATLANTA — A dramatic display of the Aurora borealis – or Northern Lights – is possible over the northern United States with a rare showing of the lights into parts of the southeast even possible.

It’s all because of several moderate to strong solar flares that erupted from the sun on Wednesday.

At least five of those solar flares are thought to be directed toward Earth, NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center says.

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Solar flares that are directed toward Earth can create geomagnetic storms and this one could be unusually strong. NOAA has issued a Severe Magnetic Storm Watch for the first time in nearly two decades, since 2005.

Geomagnetic storms can disrupt some of our everyday communications tools, like satellites and radio signals.

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The strongest storms can also even disrupt the power grid. With this storm, the main thing people in the northern hemisphere will likely notice is a more prominent – and farther south – display of the Northern Lights this weekend.

The Northern Lights are common in high latitudes. They’re created as solar energy reaches Earth and interacts with its uppermost atmosphere. In much stronger solar events, like this one, the Northern Lights can be visible low on the horizon much farther south.

Severe Weather Team 2 says the current Aurora forecast for Friday and Saturday night and there is a possibility northern lights could be seen as far south as southern California, Tennessee, and North Carolina.

At this time, it’s unlikely the Aurora will be visible in the north Georgia mountains.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration has a gallery of the various flares recorded from May 2 to May 9 online.

An advisory on the phenomena was issued by the federal agency Thursday.

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