The Aurora Borealis, also often known as the Northern Lights, shines on Crosby Beach, Liverpool, UK, photo … [+]
Since Friday, May 11, the Aurora Borealis, or northern lights, have been a blinding spectacle within the night skies of the United States, Canada and Europe. High-energy particles from the sun interact with the Earth’s magnetic field, creating blinding and engaging geomagnetic storms.
The rare natural phenomenon, not commonly seen since 2003, transformed European and North American skies into sensible shades of interstellar scarlet, pink, purple, blue and green in a unprecedented display that captivated tens of millions of stargazers .
These extraordinary phenomena, most pronounced near Earth’s magnetic poles, occur when the Sun releases large clouds of particles called “coronal mass ejections.” [CMEs]“or solar storms heading toward Earth.”
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Space Weather Prediction CenterThe extreme geomagnetic storm will proceed and, weather permitting, will probably be visible at the very least until Sunday.
The powerful solar ejections that led to the rare Northern Lights on Friday and Saturday were observed across Europe in Germany, Spain, Great Britain, Ireland, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic and within the United States as far south as Alabama, Texas and Southern California.
Northern lights appear within the night sky of the Dutch countryside in Winterle, Netherlands. photo … [+]
The Northern Lights, visible in Dnipro, Ukraine. Photo by Artem Tsehelnyk.
A pair watches the Aurora Borealis in Manning Park, British Columbia, Canada. Photo by Andrew Chin
People visit St Mary’s Lighthouse in Whitley Bay, England to see the Aurora Borealis. Photo by Ian … [+]
Aurora Borealis lights up the night sky north of San Francisco in Middletown, California. Photo of … [+]
Northern lights over Vienna, Austria. (Photo by Max Slovenck
The Aurora Borealis could be seen in British Columbia, Canada. Photo by Andrew Chin.
Northern lights light up the sky in Ostrava, Czech Republic. Photo by Lukas Kabon.
The Northern Lights could be seen from Berga, near Barcelona, Spain. Photo by Albert Llop.
People visit St. Mary’s Lighthouse in England. Photo by Ian Forsyth
The Northern Lights illuminate the Irish Sea. Photo by Fabien Pallueau
Northern Lights in San Francisco’s North Bay, seen from San Rafael, California. Photo by Tayfun … [+]
Aurora Borealis in San Francisco. Photo by Tayfun Coskun
Aurora Borealis in Muskoka, Ontario, Canada. Photo by Mert Alper Dervis.
Aurora Borealis in Espoo, Finland. Photo by Heikki Saukkomaa
Aurora Borealis over Arthur’s Seat in Edinburgh. Photo by Jane Barlow/
The Northern Lights, visible in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Ukraine. Photo by Yulia Kirichok/Suspilne … [+]
Aurora Borealis lights up the sky in Rochester, New York. (Photo by Lokman Vural Elibol
