Major Solar Storm
Major Solar Storm, Jake Stehli took this photo of the aurora borealis on the outskirts of Hartford at 4:30 a.m. Tuesday. A severe solar storm that slammed into Earth is pushing the colorful northern lights farther south, including southeastern Wisconsin. Officials says chances are strong the northern lights can be seen tonight.
Jake Stehli took this photo of the aurora borealis on the outskirts of Hartford at 4:30 a.m. Tuesday. A severe solar storm that slammed into Earth is pushing the colorful northern lights farther south, including southeastern Wisconsin. Officials says chances are strong the northern lights can be seen tonight.
It's rare for the northern lights to be seen in southern Wisconsin but a severe solar storm slamming into Earth Tuesday could provide a light show in the sky.
Like all meteorological phenomena, it's not guaranteed. But if the lava lamp-like sky show is going to occur any time soon, it could be this evening.
"The predictions for the next several hours indicate we could easily have an aurora borealis even in Milwaukee but certainly out of the city," Jean Creighton, director of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Manfred Olson Planetarium, said at 4:30 p.m.
Scientists were surprised to see the solar storm hit with such a big geomagnetic jolt. Forecasters initially thought the storm, which they predicted would be a Level 1, the lowest on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's 1-to-5 scale, would arrive late Tuesday evening into Wednesday morning. But instead the storm showed up at 9 a.m. Tuesday and was much more severe than anticipated — a Level 4.
"My goodness, it's lighting up the night," said Bob Bonadurer, director of the Milwaukee Public Museum's Daniel M. Soref Planetarium. "I don't know if it's going to continue into tonight but it might."
This is the strongest solar storm to hit Earth since fall 2013. It's been nearly a decade since a Level 5 solar storm slammed into the planet.
An index that measures the activity of the sun, called a Planetary K-index, every three hours is showing the chances for seeing the northern lights in Milwaukee area is very high. On Monday the Planetary K-index was between 1 and 3 in southern Wisconsin.
"The cutoff for Milwaukee is 6. If they are over 6 we should see (the northern lights) and in the last few hours they've gone up to 8," Creighton said. "I don't think I can remember the last time I saw a KP index of 8 here in Milwaukee."
Scientists say there's a very strong possibility the northern lights could be seen as far south as the middle United States because the sun is very active. According to spaceweather.com, bright auroras were seen before sunrise Tuesday over several northern states including Wisconsin, Minnesota, Montana, North and South Dakota, and Washington.
Bonadurer said the chances of viewing the northern lights in southern Wisconsin are not great because storms dissipate over time and it's unknown how long this storm might last.
Fortunately the weather forecast calls for clear skies tonight in southeastern Wisconsin, said Rudy Schaar, a National Weather Service meteorologist based in Sullivan. Low temperatures are expected in the low 20s with light westerly winds.
Judging by beautiful photos of the northern lights snapped between midnight and sunrise today, including this one taken in Hartford, Wis., Bonadurer is guessing the best time to see them, if they show up, would be early evening tonight.
No fancy telescopes or binoculars are needed, though the darker the skies, the easier they can be seen, which means city dwellers will have more difficulty viewing them.
"All you need is a blanket or a lawn chair and dark skies. You don't need anything special," said Bonadurer.
Creighton recommends finding a view toward the north that's in relative darkness though it's possible the northern lights could be seen in the city.
Jake Stehli learned of the solar storm through Twitter — he communicates with a group of northern lights enthusiasts — and headed out from his home in Hartford to find dark enough skies. Unfortunately clouds obscured the northern lights but Stehli was patient.
"I raced out even though it was cloudy, hoping it would clear," Stehli said. "You could see a little bit of green within the clouds. About 4:30 there was a hole that opened up for about five minutes and you could see the pinks and greens.
Stehli shot the picture he posted on spaceweather.com on his Rebel T4i digital camera with a 14mm lens for 10 seconds at F2.8. He's seen the northern lights 30 to 40 times since 2012, though three-quarters of those viewings were far off on the horizon. Even though the aurora borealis could be seen only for a few minutes, Stehli was still pumped.
"I was pretty excited because it was an increasing storm. It was a little disappointing with the clouds. Had the clouds not been there last night I think there would have been many more pictures from this area," Stehli said. "This is now turning out to be the largest geomagnetic storm of this solar cycle. Aurora displays are amazing around the world and there's a slight chance it might hold for tonight."
Since the sun is an active star, cooler gases are continually trying to sink while hotter gases are rising, creating a magnetic field. Sometimes the solar energy breaks free from the sun and if that energy is in the direction of the 3rd planet in the solar system, within a day or two those electromagnetic particles begin slamming into the Earth.
The best places to see the aurora borealis are closest to the North and South Pole.
"Southern Wisconsin is closer to the equator than the North Pole. That's important because these particles from the sun get in at the geographic poles, and they start bombarding the air molecules around the magnetic pole. The closer you are (to the poles) the better chance you have of seeing them" said Bonadurer.
The northern lights are incredibly popular with some folks paying big fees to travel companies organizing trips to the Arctic Circle or other prime viewing spots. At the Milwaukee Public Museum's planetarium, Bonadurer frequently asks audiences whether anyone has ever seen the aurora borealis and only a small percentage raise their hands.
Aside from possibly pushing the northern lights farther south, the solar storm could affect power grids and GPS tracking though so far no damage has been reported. Two blasts of magnetic plasma shot out from the sun Sunday, combined into one storm and arrived on Earth about 15 hours earlier than expected. It has the potential to temporarily disrupt power grids and could degrade GPS so maps and locations may not be as precise as normal.
Jake Stehli took this photo of the aurora borealis on the outskirts of Hartford at 4:30 a.m. Tuesday. A severe solar storm that slammed into Earth is pushing the colorful northern lights farther south, including southeastern Wisconsin. Officials says chances are strong the northern lights can be seen tonight.
It's rare for the northern lights to be seen in southern Wisconsin but a severe solar storm slamming into Earth Tuesday could provide a light show in the sky.
Like all meteorological phenomena, it's not guaranteed. But if the lava lamp-like sky show is going to occur any time soon, it could be this evening.
"The predictions for the next several hours indicate we could easily have an aurora borealis even in Milwaukee but certainly out of the city," Jean Creighton, director of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Manfred Olson Planetarium, said at 4:30 p.m.
Scientists were surprised to see the solar storm hit with such a big geomagnetic jolt. Forecasters initially thought the storm, which they predicted would be a Level 1, the lowest on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's 1-to-5 scale, would arrive late Tuesday evening into Wednesday morning. But instead the storm showed up at 9 a.m. Tuesday and was much more severe than anticipated — a Level 4.
"My goodness, it's lighting up the night," said Bob Bonadurer, director of the Milwaukee Public Museum's Daniel M. Soref Planetarium. "I don't know if it's going to continue into tonight but it might."
This is the strongest solar storm to hit Earth since fall 2013. It's been nearly a decade since a Level 5 solar storm slammed into the planet.
An index that measures the activity of the sun, called a Planetary K-index, every three hours is showing the chances for seeing the northern lights in Milwaukee area is very high. On Monday the Planetary K-index was between 1 and 3 in southern Wisconsin.
"The cutoff for Milwaukee is 6. If they are over 6 we should see (the northern lights) and in the last few hours they've gone up to 8," Creighton said. "I don't think I can remember the last time I saw a KP index of 8 here in Milwaukee."
Scientists say there's a very strong possibility the northern lights could be seen as far south as the middle United States because the sun is very active. According to spaceweather.com, bright auroras were seen before sunrise Tuesday over several northern states including Wisconsin, Minnesota, Montana, North and South Dakota, and Washington.
Bonadurer said the chances of viewing the northern lights in southern Wisconsin are not great because storms dissipate over time and it's unknown how long this storm might last.
Fortunately the weather forecast calls for clear skies tonight in southeastern Wisconsin, said Rudy Schaar, a National Weather Service meteorologist based in Sullivan. Low temperatures are expected in the low 20s with light westerly winds.
Judging by beautiful photos of the northern lights snapped between midnight and sunrise today, including this one taken in Hartford, Wis., Bonadurer is guessing the best time to see them, if they show up, would be early evening tonight.
No fancy telescopes or binoculars are needed, though the darker the skies, the easier they can be seen, which means city dwellers will have more difficulty viewing them.
"All you need is a blanket or a lawn chair and dark skies. You don't need anything special," said Bonadurer.
Creighton recommends finding a view toward the north that's in relative darkness though it's possible the northern lights could be seen in the city.
Jake Stehli learned of the solar storm through Twitter — he communicates with a group of northern lights enthusiasts — and headed out from his home in Hartford to find dark enough skies. Unfortunately clouds obscured the northern lights but Stehli was patient.
"I raced out even though it was cloudy, hoping it would clear," Stehli said. "You could see a little bit of green within the clouds. About 4:30 there was a hole that opened up for about five minutes and you could see the pinks and greens.
Stehli shot the picture he posted on spaceweather.com on his Rebel T4i digital camera with a 14mm lens for 10 seconds at F2.8. He's seen the northern lights 30 to 40 times since 2012, though three-quarters of those viewings were far off on the horizon. Even though the aurora borealis could be seen only for a few minutes, Stehli was still pumped.
"I was pretty excited because it was an increasing storm. It was a little disappointing with the clouds. Had the clouds not been there last night I think there would have been many more pictures from this area," Stehli said. "This is now turning out to be the largest geomagnetic storm of this solar cycle. Aurora displays are amazing around the world and there's a slight chance it might hold for tonight."
Since the sun is an active star, cooler gases are continually trying to sink while hotter gases are rising, creating a magnetic field. Sometimes the solar energy breaks free from the sun and if that energy is in the direction of the 3rd planet in the solar system, within a day or two those electromagnetic particles begin slamming into the Earth.
The best places to see the aurora borealis are closest to the North and South Pole.
"Southern Wisconsin is closer to the equator than the North Pole. That's important because these particles from the sun get in at the geographic poles, and they start bombarding the air molecules around the magnetic pole. The closer you are (to the poles) the better chance you have of seeing them" said Bonadurer.
The northern lights are incredibly popular with some folks paying big fees to travel companies organizing trips to the Arctic Circle or other prime viewing spots. At the Milwaukee Public Museum's planetarium, Bonadurer frequently asks audiences whether anyone has ever seen the aurora borealis and only a small percentage raise their hands.
Aside from possibly pushing the northern lights farther south, the solar storm could affect power grids and GPS tracking though so far no damage has been reported. Two blasts of magnetic plasma shot out from the sun Sunday, combined into one storm and arrived on Earth about 15 hours earlier than expected. It has the potential to temporarily disrupt power grids and could degrade GPS so maps and locations may not be as precise as normal.