During the week of November 10, the Northern Lights, also known as the Aurora Borealis, will be visible around the United States. On Tuesday night, around 7:45 p.m., the Northern Lights were visible in Colorado. It’s the latest event Colorado has seen of the Northern Lights. This event is one of the most significant solar flares around the United States. States like South Dakota, California, Arizona, Texas, and Florida all saw the Northern Lights and will continue to see them until the end of the week.
“Yeah, that was the first time I’ve ever seen them. It was really cool. I didn’t even know we could see the Northern Lights in Colorado,” Kai Lasher ‘28 said after viewing the Lights in Littleton on Tuesday.
So what’s causing the Northern Lights so far south? The Northern Lights are visible due to a severe geomagnetic storm. The reason this storm is happening is due to the sun interacting with Earth’s magnetic field. According to NOAA, this storm is considered a G4 storm, strong enough to cause the aurora to be visible this far south. The storm peaked on November 11 but will still be visible south until Friday, November 14.
Vaughn Lisec ‘27 says, “I didn’t see them last night, but I’m very excited to see the Lights. I saw a few pictures of my grandpa, and they really encouraged me. I want to see if I can go outside and see them. “
So this week, after school, when the sun goes down, go look outside for the Northern Lights. It’s noted that if you drive away from the city and into a darker area, you’ll see the lights better than in the city.
On Wednesday nights, lights appeared again around Colorado, but cloud cover blocked this G5 storm. A G5 storm is the largest storm that can cause the lights to come this far south. So go out on Thursday night and see the lights.
Some good places in Littleton to see them include Chatfield State Park, Roxborough State Park, Jackass Hill, Deer Creek Park, Daniels Park, and any park areas without lights.