SPACE — Skywatchers enjoy a night of surprises. They witness the aurora as the strongest solar storm that occurred last night hits Earth. This is the strongest storm that occurred in recent years.
A surprising solar storm brought auroras across the US and Europe last night (23 March 2023 local time). As a result, sightings of the colorful aurora displays have been reported as far south as New Mexico and Arizona.
The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) classifies the solar storm as G4 (severe) on a scale of 5. Strangely, space weather forecasters did not see the storm coming as it was caused by a hidden solar eruption.
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As a result, the stunning views of the aurora commonly seen in Canada, northern Europe, and Alaska can be seen at locations with much lower latitudes.
Photographer Lauren Thompson shared a photo on Twitter that was taken the night it appeared to be the aurora in New Mexico.
“I can’t believe we’re seeing this in New Mexico! It’s currently somewhere between the Pecos and Las Vegas!” he said in one tweet.
Photographers in Arizona, North Carolina, and Oklahoma also captured the aurora. Likewise, many states in North America can witness the Aurora.
“Best night of my life. Near Watertown, South Dakota,” Alex Resel tweeted.
Auroras are triggered by interactions between charged particles flowing from the sun in the form of solar wind and molecules in Earth’s atmosphere. Because the planet’s magnetic field lines funnel solar particles toward the poles, most aurora displays are visible only at very high latitudes.
However, when powerful solar wind bursts hit Earth all at once, such as those released during a coronal mass ejection, the auroras can spread significantly toward the equator. During the most intense solar storm in recorded history, sightings of the aurora were reported as far south as the Bahamas.
Space weather forecasters initially predicted a moderate G2 geomagnetic storm would occur on March 23 and 24. Such a storm would amplify the aurora mostly at rather high latitudes.
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