4Warn Weather – All of Michigan has a good shot at seeing Northern Lights on Friday night into Saturday morning -- but will the weather cooperate?
What’s happening?
A series of solar flares and eruptions could cause geomagnetic storm conditions to persist through the weekend across Lower Michigan. That’s a very scientific way of saying we could see the Northern Lights! A large sunspot cluster has produced several moderate to strong solar flares since Wednesday at 5:00AM. This has led the Space Prediction Center to issue a G4 Storm Watch for the first time since 2005. You might have even seen solar flares like this during the Solar Eclipse a few weeks back. That was the red spot on the rim of the sun.
What are the impacts?
Geomagnetic storms can potentially disrupt radio and satellite operations like navigation. SWPC has notified the operators of these systems so they can take protective action. Now I am not saying that this is going to destroy our power grid or cause a widespread loss of broadcast transmissions. It just means that the sun goes through cycles every 11 years and it is in its active phase right now.
What does this mean for Northern Lights visibility?
Geomagnetic storms can also trigger spectacular displays of the aurora borealis (dancing lights) on Earth. A severe geomagnetic storm (G4) includes the potential for aurora to be seen as far south as Alabama and Northern California.
Catch a photo of the lights? Post it to Local 4′s MIPics here and we’ll show them on TV.
What time?
The peak time will be midnight to 4 a.m. Saturday.
Best place to see them in Metro Detroit with forecast
Cloud cover ahead of our next rain maker appears to work its way into Northern Lower Michigan before the Thumb region tonight, so I actually think your best chance of seeing the Northern Lights overnight will be in the Thumb region, closer to Port Huron, and possibly areas of Metro Detroit, in an area away from light pollution.
---> More: Northern Lights chances increase for all of Michigan tonight: What to know