Avery will be a freshman at Kansas State University this fall, studying Animal Science on the Pre-Veterinary Path with an emphasis in equine. Over the summer, she is a lifeguard and often works for PSF. She has always had a love for nature and astronomy.
Has there ever been a time in your life in which nature has taken your breath away? Maybe it was a beautiful sunset, a double rainbow at the end of a strong storm, experiencing the first snowfall of the year, or a drive through the mountains. The aurora borealis which occurred in the early morning of May 11, 2024, was what did it for me, taking my breath away as I stood staring in awe at the sky. Many U.S. citizens, and other countries as well, were fortunate enough to see this fantastic light show. You may be wondering why this specific aurora borealis event was so grand, and how it wasn’t localized to just one region. Maybe you’re wanting to find out where these lights are usually visible, so that you can see them again. There’s so much we can learn about the northern lights- these flashing, colorful paintings in the sky!
I had just graduated high school earlier in the evening, and was outside getting some fresh air with my classmates while we all soaked up one more night together as a class. I saw headlight-looking images above us, and yelled, “Where are those lights coming from?!” After I pulled out my camera, I realized what I was witnessing. “It’s the northern lights!”, I exclaimed to my classmates, unable to hold my excitement. The River Ridge Class of 2024 all watched the northern lights together that night, which is why this event will always hold such a special place in my heart. People all over the world had remarkable experiences, including some as far south as Florida in the U.S. and Ladakh in northern India. These lights were also visible the night of Mother’s Day, making for a priceless Mother’s Day gift from the sky!
How did this phenomenon happen, and how could so many people see it? Well, we have a rare G5 geomagnetic storm to thank, which was unleashed by our hyper-active sun a few days prior to the aurora borealis. Between May 3 and May 9, NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory cataloged 82 "notable" solar flares spawning from two active regions on the sun. These clusters of sunspots grew so complex that they erupted repeatedly during the week. Starting on May 7, at least seven coronal mass ejections charged toward Earth and began storming our planet on May 10, which was when the strongest auroras were seen on Earth.
Northern lights are most commonly seen in the northern hemisphere, but more specifically within the auroral oval. This area has latitudes of 60-75°, and includes places like Iceland, Northern Sweden, Finland, Norway, Russia, Canada, Alaska, and Southern Greenland. To find an accurate forecast for auroras, websites like the Space Weather Prediction Centre, a part of NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), generate an animated ovation map depicting the auroral oval based on current solar wind conditions, which is updated every 30 minutes.
If you didn’t already in May, I truly hope your breath will get taken away by aurora borealis at least once in your life, and that you get to experience nature's greatest light show!
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