Idaho expects northern lights this weekend when a ‘strong’ solar storm blasts Earth

The aurora borealis is expected to be visible in Idaho from Friday through Sunday as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Space Weather Prediction Center issued a G3 (Strong) Geomagnetic Storm watch .

But will they be visible from Boise? Will the clouds clear up in time to see them? Here’s what we know so far.

Will the northern lights be visible from Boise?

According to NOAA’s experimental aurora dashboard , Idaho is expected to see the strong geomagnetic storm Friday night. However, Boise falls bellow the predicted view line. NOAA’s prediction says that the aurora view line will cover most of northern Idaho, giving some Gem State residents a chance to see the northern lights on the horizon.

Erica Grow Cei, a spokesperson from the National Weather Service, said the SPWC monitors sunspots to predict the when another geomagnetic storm will occur.

“When that flare or coronal mass ejection ejects off of the sun, our first piece of information that we get is from this satellite called Discover that gives us an idea of the intensity of the eruption and its character,” said Grow Cei. “So there is the possibility if all the stars align, figuratively, that you could see the aurora in Idaho.”

Will Idaho have clouds during the northern lights?

While the northern lights may be visible over Idaho the weekend, the clouds might obstruct the view on Friday evening.

Bill Wojcik, a meterologist from the NWS, said there is a chance of cloud cover late Friday evening into Saturday. The NWS website also showed mostly clear conditions Friday night.

“We could see some clouds tomorrow, at least in the evening, but overnight tomorrow night, it clears out by early Saturday morning,” Wojcik said. “So if we have an aurora tomorrow night looks like probably after midnight, it would clear out.”