Mother Nature may be competing with the Big Apple skyline tonight.
A “severe” geomagnetic storm may be poised to send the stunning northern lights across the continental United States with the auroras potentially visible across much of the northern US — and as far south as Alabama and west as California — the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration alerted.
Earlier in the week on Tuesday night, the sun emitted a solar flare, rapidly prompting a coronal mass ejection (CME), a large burst of plasma and electric waves.
The agency predicts that the storm is potentially hitting the Earth as early as this morning or midday. This current CME is considered to be “severe” and a four out of 5 on NOAA’s geomagnetic storm scale.
And, while it looks like a bulk of the country — and just about all of Canada — may be in for incredibly stunning views, there are risks associated with this space weather as well.
“Detrimental impacts to some of our critical infrastructure technology are possible,” warns NOAA.
The New York City Office of Emergency Management also advised that the storm could bring on some local headaches, too.
While “unlikely,” the department cautioned that satellites could show “increased inconsistencies” and that “more and longer periods in reduction of GPS” may also occur.
There may also be “possible increased and more frequent voltage control problems” and power outages are “unlikely but possible.”
While the forecast is subject to change, the most recent NOAA models show the aurora view line reaching down to the northernmost parts of Kansas.
In the northeast, the view line cuts directly across Long Island, northern New Jersey, and most of Pennsylvania north of the Philadelphia area.
Friday’s current forecast shows the lights may still be present at the tip of upstate New York and more northern states out west to Washington.
The best chance to see the northern lights clearly is by getting out of densely populated and city areas with lots of light pollution.