It may not have been visible to the naked eye, but several Arizonans were able to catch some amazing photos.
PHOENIX — The Northern Lights sure put on a show for Arizona Friday night!
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration issued a rare severe geomagnetic storm warning when a solar outburst reached Earth on Friday afternoon. The effects were due to last through the weekend and possibly into next week.
Arizonans in Flagstaff, Prescott Valley, Cottonwood and Groom Creek all caught photos of lights in the sky.
Northern lights seen in Arizona after extreme solar storm
Joan Marie
Northern lights in Prescott Valley
What do the different colors of the Northern Lights mean?
The colors of the Northern Lights depend on the level of solar activity and the sun's charged particles reacting to gasses in the atmosphere. The color depends on the types of gasses involved.
Arizona saw a lot of pinks and purples in the sky. The pink colors only happen during intense solar activity and are caused by "excited atomic oxygen" at high altitudes. The purples are ionized molecular nitrogen, which is uncommon in lower altitudes.
Good explanation of what you saw last night...for us this far South, we see a lot of the reddish pink because at our latitude, we see the upper altitude mostly. We in the South experienced something very unique and possibly once in a lifetime for those that were curious... pic.twitter.com/Omq52fXDZp
— Dr. Marshall Shepherd (@DrShepherd2013) May 11, 2024
NOAA is calling this an unusual event, pointing out that the flares seem to be associated with a sunspot that’s 16 times the diameter of Earth. An extreme geomagnetic storm in 2003 took out power in Sweden and damaged power transformers in South Africa.
Several X users as far south as Florida and Texas posted photos and videos of the colorful skies.
Aurora Borealis seen from San Tan Valley, Arizona!!! Not the best picture but never thought I’d see them this far south in my life #aurora #Auroraborealis #azwx #wx #NorthernLights pic.twitter.com/d14GJEeJSc
— Aaron kluth (@Aaronkluth) May 11, 2024
Northern Lights RIGHT NOW over #KeyLargo Florida, this is insane to see the Aurora Borealis so far south ! pic.twitter.com/iBljm17x82
— Mike Theiss (@MikeTheiss) May 11, 2024
— Fancy Boots (@TexasFancyBoots) May 11, 2024Never in my dreams would I have imagined I’d be able to see the Northern Lights in South Austin, TX. But here we are.
So so cool.#NorthernLights | #Texas
(Thanks @WendyKJ for the camera tip!) pic.twitter.com/dCk7X6TKti
Using eclipse glasses to see CMEs
If you still have eclipse glasses, they may come in handy this weekend. Using solar eclipse glasses, you can see the cause of the massive solar storm.
The solar storm is an eruption on the surface of the sun that's sending jets of particles streaming toward Earth, called Coronal Mass Ejections.
"The sun gets this active region on it, and it starts to get excited, and eventually releases this burst of particles," ASU assistant professor Katrina Bossert said.
The active regions, Bossert said, are clusters of sunspots on the sun, which you can see without a telescope.
If you still have eclipse glasses, Bossert said, you can look at the sun and see a dark spot at the bottom of the sun. Those are the sunspots.
But again, only look at the sun through eclipse glasses. Similar to the dangers posed by looking at a solar eclipse without proper eye protection, the same dangers are present for the solar storm.
- Eyes to the sky: Parts of US see northern lights as solar storm hits Earth
- Still have those eclipse glasses? Here's why they might come in handy this weekend
Up to Speed
Catch up on the latest news and stories on the 12News YouTube channel. Subscribe today.
Watch 12News+ for free
You can now watch 12News content anytime, anywhere thanks to the 12News+ app!
The free 12News+ app from 12News lets users stream live events — including daily newscasts like "Today in AZ" and "12 News" and our daily lifestyle program, "Arizona Midday"—on Roku and Amazon Fire TV.
12News+ showcases live video throughout the day for breaking news, local news, weather and even an occasional moment of Zen showcasing breathtaking sights from across Arizona.
Users can also watch on-demand videos of top stories, local politics, I-Team investigations, Arizona-specific features and vintage videos from the 12News archives.
Roku: Add the channel from the Roku store or by searching for "12 News KPNX."
Amazon Fire TV: Search for "12 News KPNX" to find the free 12News+ app to add to your account, or have the 12News+ app delivered directly to your Amazon Fire TV through Amazon.com or the Amazon app.
