On Wednesday night, a ‘cannibal” solar flare caused a stunning display of Northern Lights across the United States. The hues were visible as far as California and Connecticut.
Since Monday, it was the result of three coronal mass-ejections (CMEs), outbursts by the sun. This third eruption overtook both previous CMEs and turned it into a “cannibal” solar flare.
The bright nighttime displays result from the Earth’s electrons colliding and the Earth’s thin, upper atmosphere.
The flare reached the earth’s magnetic field on Wednesday resulting in a level 3 – out of a 5 point scale- geomagnetic storm. The storm resulted in a stunning show of the Northern Lights from Washington to Maine.
Some parts of California were able to see Friday’s storm, although Connecticut is too far south to be able observe it.
The outbursts are connected to sunspots, which are magnetic storms on the sun’s surface.
Hongming Zheng captured the stunning scene of the Northern Lights in Lincoln, California on Wednesday, November 4
Northern California skies were illuminated with an incredible red glow when the aurora borealis peeked through clouds
As is normal for Northern Lights, the beautiful display could only be seen for just a few seconds Wednesday night.
Bright green lights brighten up the sky above North Dakota on Monday November 1 as the geomagnetic storm began
North Dakota’s Northern Lights were created by solar flares that reacted with Earth’s magnetic field.
The beautiful natural phenomena was also spotted in Northeast Montana as clouds began to roll in but did not block the view
Solar flares bring an influx of electrons that interact with the oxygen and nitrogen in Earth’s magnetic field surrounding the planet. The aurora borealis is the scientific name of the Northern Lights.
An 11-year cycle tracks the sun’s activity. Scientists expect the sun to reach its maximum activity in the summer 2025, when it is in “solar cycle 25”.
Space.com’s Bill Murtagh told Space.com that despite having very low activity in the past few years, we are now ramping up and increasing our speed into the next cycle maximum of solar radiation.
Murtagh stated that we are seeing an increase in activity due to the rise of the sun’s energy. This is a sign of our awakening.
CMEs are described as a ‘billion-ton cloud, plasma gas and magnetic fields with magnetic field’ by He. “So, the sun sent a magnet into space. That magnet completed the 93 million-mile journey from the Sun to Earth.
The Northern Lights, while easier to spot from dark locations, are often more difficult to find in faraway places. However, this week’s lights were bright enough to illuminate Calgary’s skyline, Alberta, Canada.
Drone footage captured the moment that the aurora borealis glowed in Alberta.
Bright colorful lights were recorded dancing in the dark sky above Manitoba, Canada putting on a beautiful display
As three solar flares traveled towards Earth’s orbit, pink and green light flashed between the stars of Manitoba, Canada.
The Earth’s own magnetic field reacted to CMEs magnetic fields, causing this week’s geomagnetic storm.
CMEs 1 and 2 essentially cleared the road for CME 3, which then ‘cannibalized the’ previous CMEs, to complete the journey of 93 million-miles to Earth’s orbit.
Fox News was presented the phenomena by Dr. Mark Conde (a University of Alaska Fairbanks physics professor).
Conde explained that most likely neither CME (or CME) would have been able to eject enough material at Earth to create more than moderate disruption. “But, in this instance, the blast front created by the second flare traveled to Earth faster that the material shot by the first flare, so it outran the expanding front from the first flare.
Conde explained the third CME became a ‘Cannibal’ solar when it caught up to Sunday’s flare ‘and sort of (ate) it.’
‘Several CMEs occurred 1-2 Nov, to include a full halo CME,’ the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration tweeted
“G3 Storm Levels were attained at 03/2359 UTC in response to an anticipated CME Arrival,” the NOAA Space Weather account tweeted.
“The combined effect of the two flares produced a greater impact on Earth than any one CME alone.” According to Fox News, the combined effects of the flares reached Earth at nearly three times the speed of CME under calm conditions.
A CME can grow as it travels through space depending on the size of the CME and how the two magnetic fields align.
Murtagh explained that scientist are able to model how a CME will travel but only after the magnetic field is measured once the outburst reaches the Deep Space Climate Observatory (DSCOVR), a NOAA spacecraft which hovers a million miles from the Earth towards the sun.
At that point, the geomagnetic storm is typically about 20 to 30 minutes away from hitting the earth.
These types of storms have happen hundreds of times but they can impact crucial infrastructure, including power grids, navigation satellites, and airplane radio communications in remote areas.