Northern Lights Illuminate Skies Across the United States

A severe geomagnetic storm has illuminated skies across the United States, making the aurora borealis visible in states ranging from Minnesota and Massachusetts to Florida, Colorado, and Texas. This widespread display results from multiple coronal mass ejections (CMEs) emitted by the sun in recent days. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) issued a G4 geomagnetic storm watch in response to these CMEs, which are large expulsions of plasma and magnetic fields from the sun's corona. Geomagnetic storms of this magnitude can disrupt critical communication infrastructure. NOAA had indicated that such storms could make the northern lights visible in southern U.S. regions starting Tuesday night. Additional auroral activity may be observed on Wednesday night in certain areas.