Solar storm: Northern lights put on a show in Minnesota
Minnesota was one of at least 12 states to see impressive northern lights.
It was the best show in years for parts of Minnesota.
A strong solar storm hit the earth late Monday night into Tuesday morning. The resulting interaction with earth’s magnetosphere generated one of the best northern lights displays in many years.
Clouds hung over parts of eastern Minnesota overnight. But the aurora was visible in several locations west and north of the Twin Cities area.
CME blast
The widespread display was caused by a coronal mass ejection (CME) that struck the earth’s magnetosphere overnight.
Northern lights were reported in at least 12 states, according to spaceweather.com. Check out the aurora gallery here.
It's been a while. Last night, auroras were sighted in more than a dozen U.S. states after a CME struck Earth's magnetic field.
Earth's magnetic field is reverberating from the impact of a CME during the early hours of Oct. 12 (0230 UT). The blow triggered a G2-class geomagnetic storm — actually, a double storm — which is only now subsiding more than 12 hours later.
Arctic sky watchers should remain alert for auroras as Earth exits the CME's magnetized wake. In some states, the auroras were so bright, onlookers photographed them using nothing more than their cellphones.
Farther north, the aurora show produced dazzling shimmering green curtains in Alaska.
Tuesday morning may have been the best of the show with this solar storm. But there could be some residual auroral displays Tuesday night.
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