Aurora again: Spectacular celestial shows expected shortly as CMEs hit Earth | See pics
Mother's Day auroras? Northern lights show may continue tonight The expulsions of plasma and magnetic fields from the Sun, known as CMEs are expected to reach Earth late Sunday or early Monday, "causing severe or extreme geomagnetic storms once again," said Keith Ryden, who heads the Surrey Space Centre in England to AFP news agency. But scientists said the intensity of anything seen Sunday night might not reach the level of Friday's show. Why do we get auroras on Earth after eruptions occur on Sun? NASA says THIS Friday saw the first "extreme" geomagnetic storm since October 2003 that caused blackouts in Sweden and damaged power infrastructure in South Africa.
However, no major disruptions to power or communications networks appear to have been reported this time around. Excitement over the phenomenon -- and otherworldly photos of pink, green, and purple night skies -- popped up across the world. A user wrote, “The aurora made another incredible showing last night, this time over the ghost town of Manchester, South Dakota.
This is a shot I’ve been wanting to capture for a while now". When charged particles from solar winds are captured by Earth's magnetic field, they accelerate towards the planet's magnetic poles, which is why auroras are normally seen near the Arctic region. However, during periods of heightened solar activity, the effects extend farther toward the equator.
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