A colourful glow has illuminated the night sky in 25 states in America. The Northern Lights have amazed the world for generations now. The aurora borealis, or Northern Lights, typically appear over the northern hemisphere. Normally, to see the Northern Lights, you would have to travel far north, often to Canada or Europe. The increased solar activity during the current solar maximum has allowed the magic to come to a specific number of US states. Residents in these states were amazed to find the glowing, curtain-like colours in the night sky outside their homes.
What exactly is the Aurora Borealis effect, or Northern Lights?
The northern lights are a spectacular, naturally occurring light show that appears in the night sky at high altitudes in a specific region of the planet. What causes the northern lights is solar activity. When charged particles from the Sun, known as solar wind, collide with the Earth’s upper atmosphere, the result is that the particles get excited and produce the luminous glow. NASA has its eyes fixed on the sky.
The colours are directly linked to whatever gas particles are in the solar wind. Green is the most common colour, but people have reported seeing pink, purple, blue, and red in the sky. The study of these northern lights has led us to see aurora borealis on other planets like Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn, and even on comets and dwarf stars. So it’s not limited to Earth at all. It happens all over the universe.
There is even a whole tourism sector based on the Northern Lights. The Northern Lights Company is solely focused on offering tourists custom packages that bring them to Norway to view the lights. They claim on their website:
“Nearly a decade later, we’ve created countless memorable moments for our guests…The Northern Lights Company promises an unforgettable ‘bucket list’ experience.”
Where and how have the Northern Lights come to America?
The lights will be visible to only a select few US states. Residents in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine and Alaska — among 25 states in total — will be able to just walk out of their house between 10 pm and 2 am and see a simply stunning sight. While the northern lights were at their brightest on 22 April, they can still easily be seen in the right environment.
To get a better view, you would need to be at a higher altitude in one of those states. It would also help if there were reduced light pollution in the area. So the chances you might see it out of your apartment window are low. But if you live in a dark area with minimal lights, you might have a better chance. People have paid a lot of money to travel and see the Northern Lights.
That could now be achieved much closer to home. After the Trump policies and tariffs have made America a less than likely tourist destination, this could bring international tourists back to America in some way. The lights are still visible and offer endless entertainment for the whole family. Explaining to your kids what it might be a challenge though.
What is causing the Northern Lights to move?
What has caused this movement is something known as the “solar maximum”. An 11-year cycle of magnetic activity coming from the sun. That has expanded the auroral oval, pushing the northern lights further south than usual. Americans can now experience something that has astonished us for a long time.
Alaska offered its residents an even more impressive view. But the residents in these American states will no doubt be delighted with the news of the northern lights becoming a regular occurrence in the night sky above America.
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