The northern lights have already put in a show across Ohio in May . Tonight, the aurora borealis could shine across the northern half of the United States thanks to an incoming solar storm.
Here's how you can watch.
Aurora borealis forecast tonight through Friday. Will the northern lights be visible from Ohio?
An incoming geomagnetic storm is expected to hit the Earth today, according to the Space Weather Prediction Center .
If the storm hits at its expected strength, it could push the northern lights across all of Ohio and as far south as Alabama.
Severe G4 geomagnetic storm watch issued
The Space Weather Prediction Center has issued a severe ( level G4 out of G5 ) geomagnetic storm watch for Oct. 10 to 11. According to the SWPC, issuing a watch—meaning the risk of potentially hazardous space weather has increased significantly, but its occurrence or timing is still uncertain—at this level is very rare.
The center reports that a coronal mass ejection, an eruption of plasma and magnetic fields from the sun, is expected to impact Earth today. If it hits, the resulting geomagnetic storm could cause problems with the power grid and satellite navigation, among others. It could also energize the northern lights, pushing them south into the United States.
Severe solar storm could stress power grids already hurt by Hurricanes Helene and Milton
In preparation for the solar storm, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration notified the Federal Emergency Management Agency about possible power grid disruptions as FEMA copes with the aftermath of Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton , which just hit Florida, NPR reports .
Florida is far enough south to avoid any power disruptions from the solar storm, Rob Steenburgh, a scientist with NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center, told NPR. However, NOAA space weather forecaster Shawn Dahl told NPR that experts are more concerned about how the geomagnetic storm will impact the power grid in areas recovering from Helene, which hit two weeks ago.
Aurora borealis map tonight
Here's a map of the Aurora Borealis forecast created by the Space Weather Prediction Center, showing how far south the aurora might come tonight.
When can I see the northern lights tonight? What time will the aurora borealis be visible?
During times of high geomagnetic activity, which pushes the northern lights further south, the aurora will be visible directly overhead in the northern United States, according to the prediction center .
For the best viewing, the center recommends that it be very dark. Get away from city lights and avoid trying to see them on the night of a full moon. The best time to view the aurora is within an hour or two of midnight, or 10 p.m. to 2 a.m.
How to take pictures of the aurora borealis with an iPhone
If you're looking to get a photo of the northern lights, your cellphone camera should do the job. But you might need to make a couple of adjustments to the settings.
According to Travelfoss , to get the best image, you should adjust your iPhone to capture more light. Night mode will automatically turn on, which allows the camera sensor to stay open for 1 to 3 seconds, depending on the light. For the best image of the aurora, you should adjust that setting to its maximum of 10 seconds (or 30 seconds if you're using a tripod).
If there's too much ambient light, night mode might let in too much and overexpose your photos. To combat that, you might need to modify the exposure adjustment setting, per Travelfoss.
What's causing so many solar storms? The sun is nearing its solar cycle peak
The sun is becoming more active as it nears the peak of its current 11-year solar cycle, which began in 2019, according to NASA ,
As the peak (which is projected to happen in July 2025) nears, geomagnetic storms are more likely to occur. That, in turn, increases the chances that the aurora will be visible from the United States, Erica Grow Cei, meteorologist and spokesperson for the SWPC, previously told the Beacon Journal .
Following the peak, solar activity slows down, according to NASA, growing less and less until the solar minimum. At that point, a new solar cycle begins as solar activity rebounds.
What are the northern lights? How does the aurora borealis work?
Auroras are ribbons of light weaving across Earth's northern or southern polar regions, according to NASA . Magnetic storms that have been triggered by solar activity, such as solar flares or coronal mass ejections, cause them. The solar wind carries energetic charged particles from these events away from the sun.
These energized particles hit the atmosphere at 45 million mph and are redirected to the poles by the earth's magnetic field, according to Space.com , creating the light show.
During major geomagnetic storms, the auroras expand away from the poles and can be seen over some parts of the United States, according to the NOAA .
What is a coronal mass ejection?
NASA describes coronal mass ejections as "huge bubbles of coronal plasma threaded by intense magnetic field lines that are ejected from the sun over the course of several hours." The Akron Beacon Journal reports that the space agency says they often look like "huge, twisted rope" and can occur with solar flares, or explosions on the sun's surface.
NOAA offers aurora dashboard
If you're curious about the latest forecast for the aurora, the NOAA has a tool for that. The Aurora Dashboard offers a visual, animated prediction of where the aurora might be seen in the next few minutes as well as the following day.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Northern lights could be visible in Ohio tonight after powerful solar storm. What to know
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