Aurora (Northern/Southern Lights) are one of the most beautiful phenomena of nature. They are normally reserved for those who live nearer the polar latitudes. But occasionally, a massive solar X-Flare (animated) occurs when the "gun barrel" is pointed directly at earth. When that occurs, incredible aurora can be visible as far south as the the Arizona (N. Hemisphere) or as far north as New Zealand and Southern Australia (S. Hemisphere). (Another excellent gallery from May 1, 2005.) We have a good chance for such an event in coming days: Sunspot group 792 has a complicated magnetic field that harbors energy for powerful X-class solar flares. The chance of an Earth-directed explosion is increasing as the sun's rotation turns the active region more and more to face our planet. Stay tuned to spaceweather.com and monitor auroral activity or the latest solar events. See also: How to Find a Photograph Aurora.
posted by spock on Aug 1, 2005 - 14 comments