Watch for Northern Lights tonight

[Ivan Seeking]

The Northern Lights - aurora borealis - may be visible tonight south of the 45 parallel.

http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/pmap/gif/pmapN.gif

This plot shows the current extent and position of the auroral oval in the northern hemisphere, extrapolated from measurements taken during the most recent polar pass of the NOAA POES satellite...

http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/pmap/pmapN.html

 

[MotoH]

Damn you clouds!

 

[Moonbear]

I'm too far south. The map shows me along the southern border, but I see nothing. Too bad.

 

[lisab]

I *might* be able to see them, but I live south of Seattle so the light pollution will probably get in the way.

When I lived in Fairbanks I saw them a lot of course...they're so cool . Definitely worth standing outside on a -40 night...at least for a few minutes.

 

[Char. Limit]

Wait, are they on right now!?

 

[OmCheeto]

The Northern Lights - aurora borealis - may be visible tonight south of the 45 parallel.

http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/pmap/gif/pmapN.gif

http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/pmap/pmapN.html

Light pollution and too many trees...

The moon is pretty though. And the constellations... Gads what a beautiful universe.

 

[waht]

I can setup a solar panel and charge my cell phone over night from light pollution.

 

[Lacy33]

Was this only for last night?

 

[Ivan Seeking]

I think last night was supposed to be the peak resulting from a solar flare four days ago.

Didn't see anything here in Oregon.

 

[Kronos5253]

I think last night was supposed to be the peak resulting from a solar flare four days ago.

Didn't see anything here in Oregon.

I thought it might be from the kruez stargrazer comet "colliding" with the sun... A friend of mine told me that about a month ago a kruez stargrazer comet "collided" with the sun

 

[fluidistic]

Do you have information about Australis aurorae or whatever it's called? I live in the South hemisphere... maybe there's a correlation between the north's ones and the south's ones. (Yeah I know, I should google... ahahah).

 

[Ivan Seeking]

Do you have information about Australis aurorae or whatever it's called? I live in the South hemisphere... maybe there's a correlation between the north's ones and the south's ones. (Yeah I know, I should google... ahahah).

No need to google as I already provided a link to the NOAA site. Here is the southern hemisphere.

http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/pmap/gif/pmapS.gif
http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/pmap/pmapS.html

 

[fluidistic]

No need to google as I already provided a link to the NOAA site. Here is the southern hemisphere.

http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/pmap/gif/pmapS.gif
http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/pmap/pmapS.html

Thanks and sorry for not having seen it.
Ah, there's no way I can see aurora.

 

[Lacy33]

I think last night was supposed to be the peak resulting from a solar flare four days ago.

Didn't see anything here in Oregon.

Thank you for the notice and for the link which I saved earlier today. Looks like it may take some time to understand how to follow the charts.
Of the physical sciences this is tied into a subject and passion I have had since childhood but never had a chance to study. Now with internet we can.
I also have a great interest in geomagnetism but do not know the best place to go on the internet to learn the basics on up.
There is a little mentioned on this forum under Earth.
Thanks

 

[MotoH]

Solar wind is around 600km/s, or about 2.95 days to reach earth. The fastest solar flare took around 15 minutes to reach Earth in 2005 I believe.

 

[ideasrule]

Last night I had nearly ideal conditions in my home in Toronto: clear skies, a nearly unobstructed view of the north, and tolerable (as in, suburban-level) light pollution. I looked up several times but didn't see anything.

 

[Lacy33]

ideasrule,
In Toronto do you see them? We use to see some lights in northern Minnesota.
I'm not there now. I've never seen the lights in colors though.
MotoH,
Thank you for the information on Solar wind.

 

[ideasrule]

No, I've never seen the northern lights before. That said, I've only been living in suburban Toronto for 6 years, and was only an active amateur astronomer (as in, someone who goes out every clear night) for 2. I hope to see the lights someday.

 

[MotoH]

Minnesota ftw!

Honestly there hasn't been any northern lights in about 3 years that I have seen. I am at my shack with near zero light pollution (in a blue/gray region) every weekend in the late spring, and early fall and I haven't seen anything!

Our Sun needs to ramp it up, and our magnetic field needs to sit on the couch for a couple weeks (in other words become weak.) Although getting hit with a highly energized proton doesn't sound very fun.

 

[Lacy33]

Minnesota ftw!

Honestly there hasn't been any northern lights in about 3 years that I have seen. I am at my shack with near zero light pollution (in a blue/gray region) every weekend in the late spring, and early fall and I haven't seen anything!

Our Sun needs to ramp it up, and our magnetic field needs to sit on the couch for a couple weeks (in other words become weak.) Although getting hit with a highly energized proton doesn't sound very fun.

What kind of sun screen are thinking of using for this event you are dreaming up there?
And I think it was around Lake of the Woods, MN that I saw the aurora in white about 1977 in the winter or fall. Not sure the season and I might be off a year.

 

[jtbell]

Do they ever get down to about the 35th parallel?