{"id":316451,"date":"2026-03-06T19:28:12","date_gmt":"2026-03-06T19:28:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/316451\/"},"modified":"2026-03-06T19:28:12","modified_gmt":"2026-03-06T19:28:12","slug":"increased-aurora-tonight-the-us-states-most-likely-to-see-northern-lights-displays-this-weekend","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/316451\/","title":{"rendered":"Increased aurora tonight \u2013 the US States most likely to see Northern Lights displays this weekend"},"content":{"rendered":"

Northerly states in the USA are likely to have increased displays of the Northern Lights tonight, Friday March 6, 2026 and into the weekend.<\/p>\n

Several northern US states and Canada are in line for aurora displays this weekend, potentially making for a beautiful, naked-eye event for stargazers inspired by this week’s total lunar eclipse<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"AuroraCredit: Chirag Upreti<\/p>\n

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Space Weather Prediction Center has issued a G1 (Minor) geomagnetic storm watch, due to the emergence of a high-speed solar wind.<\/p>\n

This could cause aurora displays to be visible at more southerly latitudes than usual.<\/p>\n

\"SolarSolar storms generate increased aurora not just on Earth, but across the Solar System planets that possess a magnetic field. Credit: NASA
\nWhat causes the aurora<\/p>\n

The aurora \u2013\u00a0known as the Northern Lights in the Northern Hemisphere \u2013 is a result of how our active, turbulent Sun interacts with our home planet’s magnetic field<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Sun is continuously bombarding the planets of the Solar System with a stream of charged particles known as the solar wind.<\/p>\n

Sometimes the Sun is more active than at other times, and the peaks and troughs of solar activity follow an 11-year pattern known as the solar cycle<\/a>.<\/p>\n

We’re currently just past the peak of a solar cycle, which is why we’ve seen increased aurora displays in recent years.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe 11-year pattern of the solar cycle. Credit: David Hathaway, NASA, Marshall Space Flight Center<\/p>\n

During the peak of a solar cycle, there’s an increased chance of events like coronal mass ejections (CMEs)\u00a0and coronal holes, generating solar storms.<\/p>\n

Earth is protected from the Sun by its\u00a0magnetosphere, an invisible magnetic shield.<\/p>\n

But when a solar storm does hit Earth, our planet’s magnetic field lines funnel solar particles toward the North and South Poles, generating the beautiful wisps of colour that we call the ‘aurora’.<\/p>\n

That’s why aurorae are normally seen in high-latitude regions like Alaska or Scandinavia.<\/p>\n

\"AuroraAurora over Howick Sands beach, Northumberland, UK, 20 January 2026, captured by Tom Wright
\nAurora chances over the weekend 6\u20138 March 2026<\/p>\n

The effect of the Sun’s power across the Solar System is known as space weather<\/a>, and just like meteorological weather on Earth, scientists have got pretty good at forecasting it.<\/p>\n

NOAA forecasters expect the Planetary K-index (Kp) \u2013\u00a0a measure of geomagnetic activity \u2013 to reach 4.67 (G1 level) late on Friday, March 6, 2026. That’s more than enough to generate aurora displays.<\/p>\n

At a Kp of 4 to 5, aurora may be seen low on the northern horizon in US states near the Canadian border.<\/p>\n

The best viewing window is predicted between 22:00 and 02:00 local time, when geomagnetic activity typically peaks.<\/p>\n

Under current G1 conditions, residents these US states have a good chance of seeing the aurora, provided the skies are clear:<\/p>\n

Alaska
\nWashington
\nIdaho
\nMontana
\nNorth Dakota
\nSouth Dakota
\nMinnesota
\nWisconsin
\nMichigan
\nMaine<\/p>\n

\"AuroraAurora borealis by John Chumack, Fairbanks, Alaska, USA, 12 March 2024. Equipment: Canon EOS 6D camera, 16mm lens, Bogen tripod
\nThe equinox effect<\/p>\n

Some of the best times to see aurora displays on Earth are around the March and September equinoxes<\/a>, meaning March\/April and September\/October can bring heightened activity.<\/p>\n

This is known as the Russell-McPherron effect, named after two scientists who noticed the aurora-equinox pattern.<\/p>\n

\"AA diagram showing how Earth orbits the Sun. Credit: Adrian Dean<\/p>\n

The reason is to do with Earth’s tilt on its axis and how our planet orbits the Sun.<\/p>\n

Around the time of the two equinoxes, the Sun and Earth’s polarities \u2013 their north or south poles \u2013 line up in opposite directions.<\/p>\n

When this happens, more charged particles coming from the Sun are able to pass into Earth’s atmosphere, and we get more chance of seeing an aurora display.<\/p>\n

\"EquinoxesCredit: BBC Sky at Night Magazine
\nAurora viewing tips<\/p>\n

North is the best direction to look for the aurora in the Northern Hemisphere.<\/p>\n

If you live in a town or a city, it’s good advice to get away from light pollution to a darker spot, as this will enable you to better see any aurora activity.<\/p>\n

Wait until the Sun has set and look towards the northern horizon.<\/p>\n

The best time to see the aurora in North America is generally between 22:00 and 02:00, local time.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately the Moon will be big and bright during peak aurora time this weekend, but it will be in the southern part of the sky, so may not affect your views to the north too much.<\/p>\n

\"ViewAurora captured by Chirag Upreti from New York State, USA. Sony A7R3 camera, Sigma 14-24mm lens. Single exposure: ISO 800, 14mm, f\/2.8, 10se
\nOnline resources for predicting aurora<\/p>\n

If you see or photograph the aurora this weekend, share your observations and images with us by emailing contactus@skyatnightmagazine.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Northerly states in the USA are likely to have increased displays of the Northern Lights tonight, Friday March…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":316452,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[111,139,69,147,392],"class_list":["post-316451","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-space","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-science","tag-space"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/316451","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=316451"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/316451\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/316452"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=316451"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=316451"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=316451"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}