Severe solar storm expected to produce highly-visible Northern Lights tonight

Everything is pointing in the direction of a Northern Lights show across much of Canada tonight.

The US-based National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has issued the first G4 (severe) geomagnetic watch since 2005.

The scale, used to measure the intensity of geomagnetic storms, ranged from G1 (minor) to G5 (extreme).

NOAA forecasters said today that “watches at this level are very rare.”

ICYMI, @NWSSWPC has issued the first G4 (Severe) geomagnetic watch since 2005. The aurora tomorrow may become visible over much of the northern half of the country, and maybe as far south as Alabama to northern California.https://t.co/SFKgB9x678 https://t.co/1H2sDQrIAj pic.twitter.com/1Mzzswniyl

— National Weather Service (@NWS) May 10, 2024

The NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC) explained that the severe geomagnetic storm is very likely and expected to arrive as early as later today.

Although the exact timing remains “somewhat uncertain,” it’s projected to continue throughout the weekend.

The NOAA SWPC noted that at least seven earth-directed Coronal Mass Ejections (CME) are in transit, and their source is a large, complex sunspot cluster that is 16 times the diameter of Earth.

The charged particles of a CME filtering into the Earth’s upper atmosphere around the magnetic poles are what create the phenomenon we know as the Northern Lights, or aurora borealis.

What all the scientific stuff means is that there is a very good chance the Northern Lights will put on a display in many parts of Canada tonight.

Of course, as is always the case with trying to catch a glimpse of the beautiful aurora borealis, Mother Nature needs to cooperate and produce clear skies.

In British Columbia, the forecast looks promising, with most parts of the province expecting only a few scattered clouds overnight.

At this time, it appears as though the best time to see the Northern Lights in BC will be between 8 pm and 2 am, once it gets dark of course, but that could change based on the geomagnetic storm’s arrival.