Aurora Borealis Map: Northern Lights May Dance In Several States

ACROSS AMERICA — A powerful solar flare that has been hurtling through space for days is expected to reach Earth on Wednesday, and it could cause aurora borealis displays across the northern U.S. as far south as New York over the next couple of days.

The Space Weather Prediction Center said in the equivalent of a northern lights watch alert that fragments of coronal mass ejection — or CME, a powerful explosion near the sun’s surface — that occurred Saturday could have lingering effects through Thursday.

A map of states where the auroras may be visible shows the best chances are in northern Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan. Washington State, Idaho, Montana and the Dakotas may see the lights. The same is true for New England states.

In lay terms, that means keep your eyes peeled for the auroras, which most often appear as tall rays that look like a colorful curtain made of folds of cloth.

Predicting auroras is never certain, and forecasters with the Space Weather Prediction Center, an arm of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, predicted with “fair” confidence that the CME will reach Earth. Forecasters had “lower levels of confidence” about the intensity and arrival time of the CME.

But here’s what forecasters expect: a G2, or moderate storm, that won’t disrupt power grids or knock out satellites. On Thursday, it may weaken to a G1 storm.

• Related: Why Aurora Borealis Displays Are More Frequent Right Now

This particular outburst, which lasted for about four hours, is called a “halo CME,” and as its particles approach Earth, it appears larger than the sun in the images obtained by sungazing spacecraft, LiveScience reported.

Even if this storm fizzles or you miss it, your chances of seeing the northern lights are greater than ever right now. The reason: Solar Cycle 25.

It’s an 11-year cycle in which the sun’s magnetic fields flip polarity, causing solar storms 93 million miles from Earth to occur with much more frequency over the next decade or so. That means the northern lights could dance more often in the next several years.

During geomagnetic storms, the ovals expand away from the poles and give some lucky people in the United States an ethereal sky show they’ll never forget. In particularly strong storms, people in latitudes as low as Pennsylvania, Oregon and Iowa can see the lights.

The vivid colors are caused when the protons and electrons that travel along the Earth’s magnetic field collide with nitrogen and oxygen near the North and South poles.

Editor's note: This story has been updated to correctly spell coronal mass ejection.