Will there be another spectacular showing of the aurora borealis for area residents Wednesday night?
It’s entirely possible with the latest coronal mass ejection of energy set to hit Earth later. Emporia State Peterson Planetarium Director Mark Brown says aurora was clearly visible across much of the northern horizon.
This follows two significant geomagnetic storms last year. Brown says the aurora is definitely impressive, but the geomagnetic activity can cause issues for technology.
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6:30 am Wednesday:
The aurora borealis gave area residents a strong showing overnight Tuesday night, and there could be another significant display Wednesday night.
Space Weather Prediction Center scientist Sean Still says two coronal mass ejections of energy, or CMEs, came from the sun Tuesday into early Wednesday — and another may be on the way. Still says the CME predicted for later Wednesday may be stronger than the previous two, which were impressive.
CMEs are blasts of solar materials and magnetic fields, which can cause significant impacts to technology, depending on their strength. Still says the magnetic impact usually deals with the magnetic fields for both the CME and Earth as they interact.
The Space Weather Prediction Center has issued a G4 geomagnetic storm watch for Wednesday with the potential for severe impacts, while a G3 warning for strong geomagnetic activity continues until 3 pm Central on Wednesday. A G3 watch is up for Thursday.
The aurora was visible across the northern half of the country Tuesday night and may be seen as far south as Alabama on Wednesday night. More information is available at spaceweather.gov.
Photos from KVOE listeners
