Aurora Borealis Forecast Dashboard: When and Where Can You See the Northern Lights?

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Space Weather Prediction Center recently launched a new experimental aurora dashboard that will tell observers when and where to look for the northern and southern lights.

As specified in a Newsweek report, auroras are the shimmering sky colors that can frequently be seen in night skies in locations all over the world that are close to the magnetic poles of Earth, like Alaska or Iceland.

Such light occurs when the sun is launching charged particles towards Earth through space. When they reach Earth, this planet's magnetic field guides them towards the poles where they interact with the atoms in the atmosphere.

Such interactions excite the atmospheric particles, leading them to give off light. Essentially, the color of light relies on the particle. Oxygen, which is making up approximately 21 percent of the atmosphere, is inclined to give off a green light.

Aurora Sightings

Nitrogen, which comprises roughly 78 percent of the atmosphere of Earth, is inclined to give off clues of pink, blue, or purple. Energetic interactions with the equator, in particular, may produce red colors, as well.

The auroras are a beautiful sight to behold and become rarer the closer an individual gets to the equator. Nonetheless, auroras are inclined to come closer to the equator compared to the usual whenever the sun is specifically active, and this can be forecasted.

Using the new aurora dashboard of the SWPC, people can view the aurora forecast for the next couple of minutes, the upcoming night, as well as the following night. Such forecasts exhibit how strong the aurora will be and where it will possibly take place.

According to professor in planetary Marina Galand from Imperial College London in the United Kingdom, the auroras are not only amazing to see but can also give researchers helpful information about solar activity.

Increasing Ionization

Galand also said that the energetic particles responsible for the auroral emissions ionize the heat and upper atmosphere, as well.

Increasing the ionization, by which an electron and an ion are generated, may impact communications between the ground and space, like GPS information or ground-atmosphere-ground communication like high-frequency radio communication.

In extreme cases, as specified in a related Aurora Zone report, strong currents are produced and may result in a blackout at a power station on the ground.

The upper atmosphere is also heated and expands like as an inflatable balloon warmed up. This may impact the orbit of satellites; and in extreme circumstances, as a result, it may disappear.

Inferring the Energy and Solar Particle Quantity Plausible

It is, therefore, crucial to be able to infer information on the particles bombarding the auroral regions to be able to assess the state of the paper atmosphere and its potential effect on the technologies.

Galand also explained that it is plausible to infer the energy and quantity of solar particles that smash into the atmosphere by studying the auroras' brightness and colors. Knowing such information is vital in the space weather context, she added.

Related information about Aurora Borealis is shown on ABC News's YouTube video below:

Check out more news and information on Aurora Borealis in Science Times.