"The aurora is expected to light up the night sky across northern states, including Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, both Dakotas, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, and even parts of New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. Most of Alaska is also forecast to fall within the aurora zone. Sky watchers may see the northern lights as far south as northern Iowa."
"The storm stems from a powerful solar flare on November 30, which sent a coronal mass ejection (CME) hurtling toward Earth at nearly 1.4 million miles per hour. The Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC) reported that the strongest currents are expected in the Upper Midwest, around the Great Lakes and into the Northeast. When a geomagnetic storm pushes electric currents into the ground, it acts like an invisible 'battery,' forcing extra electricity through power lines, pipelines, and even railroad tracks."
NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center issued an emergency watch for moderate to potentially strong geomagnetic activity through Thursday after a powerful solar flare and CME headed toward Earth. Charged solar particles interacting with Earth's magnetic field can force extra electricity through power lines, pipelines, and railroad tracks, sometimes causing brief voltage fluctuations and affecting power grids, satellites, and communications. The CME from an X1.9 flare on November 30 traveled at nearly 1.4 million miles per hour and is expected to deliver a glancing blow. Strongest currents are expected over the Upper Midwest, Great Lakes and Northeast, and auroras may appear across northern states and Alaska.
Read at Mail Online
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