Did you miss the Northern Lights? Don’t worry, another program is expected next month

Last week, certain parts of the world were lucky enough to catch a glimpse of the Northern Lights. If you missed the spectacular view, don’t worry. There is a possibility of another appearance next month.

The aurora borealis, also known as the Aurora Borealis, graces the sky when charged particles from the Sun travel through space and collide with Earth’s atmosphere, resulting in fascinating displays of light.

The vast cluster of sunspots, which released energy and gas toward Earth a few days ago, is expected to swing back toward us in about two weeks, scientists say, according to BBC. They think it will still be big and complex enough to cause more explosions that could create more aurora borealis.

Since last Saturday, the Sun has continued to emit high levels of radiation. A significant solar flare occurred on Tuesday, disrupting high-frequency radio communications on a global scale. This particularly active sunspot is not an isolated event. The Sun is approaching what is called “solar maximum” – a phase of its 11-year cycle when its activity is strongest.

Last weekend’s northern lights were the result of a large solar storm, as reported by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The storm was caused by a bunch of solar flares combining into a huge explosion of solar plasma.

According to Sean Elvidge, professor of space environment at the University of Birmingham, the geomagnetic storm that occurred last weekend was a once-in-30-year event and the most significant since 2003, the BBC reported. It was triggered by at least five coronal mass ejections (giant explosions of charged particles). These CMEs took around 18 hours to travel from the Sun to Earth, where they interacted with our magnetic field, known as the magnetosphere.

According to Krista Hammond of the Met Office, the huge sunspot was about 15 times the size of Earth “on the Earth-facing side of the Sun”, sending out lots of solar flares and CMEs, News Sky reported.

Some of these explosions met, making the resulting geomagnetic storm much stronger by the time it hit Earth. The storm’s intensity was so notable that it received a G5 warning rating, which is the highest designation given by meteorologists at the Met Office and NOAA, according to the BBC.