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Aurora alert! Moderate geomagnetic storm could spark northern lights as far south as New York and Idaho on June 14

Aurora alert! Moderate geomagnetic storm could spark northern lights as far south as New York and Idaho on June 14

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC) has issued a geomagnetic storm warning for June 12 due to incoming turbulent space weather. Geomagnetic storms are classified using a G-scale, which ranks their intensity from G1 (minor) to G5 (extreme).

That’s good news for aurora chasers! The predicted G2-level storm could bring northern lights as far south as New York and Idaho, provided conditions align. However, with the northern hemisphere nearing the summer solstice on June 20-21, extended daylight hours mean less time for aurora viewing, making sightings more challenging.

The spike in geomagnetic activity is driven primarily by a co-rotating interaction region (CIR) — a turbulent region in the solar wind in which fast-moving streams collide with slower wind ahead of them. CIRs can generate shock waves similar to those produced by coronal mass ejections (CMEs) and are capable of triggering geomagnetic storms and amplifying space weather effects.

The incoming CIR originated from a colossal coronal hole now turning to face Earth. Coronal holes are regions where the sun‘s magnetic field opens up, allowing high-speed solar wind to readily escape into space. They appear darker in ultraviolet images because they are cooler and less dense than the surrounding regions, lacking the hot glowing gases normally trapped by magnetic fields.

graphic showing a geomagnetic storm watch issued by NOAA as a G2 warning for June 14. — NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center have issued a moderate (G2) geomagnetic storm watch for June 14. (Image credit: NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center)

NOAA’s SWPC forecasts the Kp index — a scale from 0 to 9 that measures global geomagnetic activity — to peak at 5.67 on June 14. Higher values indicate stronger geomagnetic storms and increase the chances of seeing auroras at lower latitudes.

gif animation showing a fast stream of solar wind hitting Earth on June 14. — In the animation, the sun is represented as a yellow dot, the Earth by a green dot, and the STEREO A spacecraft by a red dot. (Image credit: NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center)

For the latest aurora forecasts and timing updates, check NOAA’s 3-day space weather outlook.

Keep up to date with the latest space weather news with our aurora forecast live blog. For real-time forecasts based on your location, consider using a space weather app. A great option is “My Aurora Forecast & Alerts” (available for iOS and Android). For a deeper dive into space weather conditions, “Space Weather Live” is another excellent choice (available for iOS and Android)