The Sun has experienced a spike in activity in recent days that has seen six or seven eruptions on the surface of the star spit out solar material towards Earth. This could supercharge the Northern Lights and potentially cause disruption with infrastructure.

The Northern Lights are set to be visible across large parts of the UK overnight as a huge solar storm is going to hit Earth.

America’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) reportedly issued its first severe solar storm warning since 2005 yesterday as a huge geomagnetic storm races towards Earth - meaning it could be the most powerful experienced in almost two decades.

It’s set to hit overnight, and could supercharge the Northern Lights, making them visible in Scotland, northern England and Wales and even further south if conditions are right.

But the impressive Aurora Borealis could also potentially interfere with infrastructure, including the power grid and satellites when it hits.

  • ArtieShaw@fedia.io
    8·
    6 months ago

    Ex-astronomer nerd here. I would, unless light pollution is also a problem in the countryside. I saw the aurora twice when I was a teen. It was a long time ago, but definitely memorable.

    Here in Ohio it’s hard to find any place with dark skies. Even farmers have high output lights attached to every barn and outbuilding. It comes off as a bit paranoid on their part, but maybe there are roving gangs of werewolves that I’m not aware of.

    If you do find a dark place, give your eyes 20 minutes to dark-adapt. Don’t look at any terrestrial light directly and you’ll find that the available light will be enough to get around. If you do need a flashlight (sorry - torch) you can cover it with a red film to avoid ruining your night vision. It does make a difference when star gazing.