A rare G4 level geomagnetic storm has the potential to make the northern lights visible in the tristate area late Friday night, and possibly through the weekend.
The Kp index, which measures the disturbance in Earth’s magnetic field, is registering around an 8 out of 9 in the New York area — the highest in the region since 2005. A Kp level of 7 or higher is typically needed to see the northern lights.
While the rare event is expected to begin around 8 p.m. Friday, residents in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut will have the best chance to view the aurora borealis between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m., according to The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Space Weather Prediction Center.
However, those in New York City will have to battle light pollution in order to see the sky, and are being advised to find darker spots like beaches and parks.
People in upstate New York and darker, more rural areas will have a higher likelihood of seeing the aurora, depending on weather and cloud coverage. There’s a high chance of rain and cloudy skies tonight, according to the National Weather Service.
The good news is that, unlike the recent solar eclipse, no special equipment is required to view the northern lights.
If you can’t find a place to see the sky well or the weather ruins your chance, there will also be a livestream of the aurora, sponsored by Explore.org.
NOAA believes we’re nearing a high point for solar activity, so this may not be the only opportunity to see the lights in the near future.
“There have been an increase in aurora seen in general on Earth. The sun has been more active, resulting in more solar storms that cause solar flares and coronal mass ejections (CME),” Shannon Schmoll, the director of the Abrams Planetarium at Michigan State University, told USA Today.
