Get Ready to Witness the Mesmerizing Northern Lights Over 17 U.S. States

If seeing the northern lights is on your bucket list, you might just be in luck. The northern lights, also known as the aurora borealis, could appear over 17 U.S. states on July 13.

The natural phenomenon is usually caused by solar winds coming from the sun and Earth’s magnetic field, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Space Weather Prediction Center.

“Aurora is the name given to the glow or light produced when electrons from space flow down Earth’s magnetic field and collide with atoms and molecules of the upper atmosphere in a ring or oval centered on the magnetic pole of Earth,” the website says. “The collisions produce light much like how electrons flowing through gas in a neon light collide with neon and other gases to produce different colored light bulbs.”

The University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute forecasts that auroral activity will be high next Thursday, with highly active light displays visible in parts of Canada and the U.S.

Want to see the northern lights? Good news: Experts predict years of awesome aurora viewing.

Where could the northern lights appear?
The northern lights could be visible in northern parts of 17 states if the weather is clear.

“Auroral activity will be high(+). Weather permitting, highly active auroral displays will be visible overhead from Inuvik, Yellowknife, Rankin and Iqaluit to Vancouver, Helena, Minneapolis, Milwaukee, Bay City, Toronto, Montpelier, and Charlottetown, and visible low on the horizon from Salem, Boise, Cheyenne, Lincoln, Indianapolis and Annapolis,” the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute’s forecast said.

Here’s where the northern lights could be visible:
Alaska
Montana
North Dakota
South Dakota
Minnesota
Wisconsin
Michigan
Maine
Maryland
New York
New Hampshire
Washington
Vermont
Idaho
Massachusetts
Wyoming
Indiana

When will northern lights appear?
The best chance of viewing the aurora borealis is between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. local time, the Space Weather Prediction Center says. People interested in seeing them should get away from city lights.

The higher the geomagnetic activity, the brighter the aurora. As the day approaches, NOAA will monitor the activity and release a forecast of its own.

When was the last major northern light event in the U.S.?
A geomagnetic storm created lights that were visible in 30 U.S. states in late April. The aurora could be seen in parts of Iowa, North Dakota, and Kansas.

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Kate Perez covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. You can reach her at [email protected] or on Twitter @katecperez_.

How can solar winds from the sun interact with Earth’s magnetic field to create the northern lights?

If catching a glimpse of the northern lights is a dream of yours, you may have a chance to witness this stunning natural phenomenon. On July 13, the aurora borealis, also known as the northern lights, could appear over 17 states in the United States.

The northern lights are typically caused by the interaction between solar winds from the sun and Earth’s magnetic field, as explained by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Space Weather Prediction Center.

According to their website, the glow or light known as the aurora is produced when electrons from space travel along Earth’s magnetic field lines and collide with atoms and molecules in the upper atmosphere. This collision creates light, similar to how electrons in a neon light collide with gases like neon to produce different colors.

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