Northern Lights Put On Show, Thanks To Large Solar Flare

The sky danced with bands of green, yellow and other colors last night, as the aurora borealis, or northern lights, dazzled viewers in the upper Northern Hemisphere. The light show was sparked by a powerful solar flare that erupted from the sun Wednesday.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Space Weather Prediction Center says that while Earth will feel the effects of the large coronal mass ejection through Sunday, it won't bring major communications or electrical problems.

If you weren't far enough in the north — or well-rested enough – to see the show, don't worry: stunning images were posted to Twitter and elsewhere. Here's a selection:

If you're in the northern U.S. or Canada, you can check out NOAA's "Aurora Forecast" to see whether the aurora borealis is likely to be visible.

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Email
  • Flipboard
Bill Chappell is a writer and editor on the News Desk in the heart of NPR's newsroom in Washington, D.C.
Related Content
  1. A world champion didn't start rock climbing until after he lost his sight
  2. Wellspring Health Access is Wyoming's only clinic to provide surgical abortions
  3. Some Wyoming Republicans want to limit the secretary of state after Trump's pick wins
  4. Environmentalists sue after the White House resumed sales of oil and gas leases