GREENSBORO, N.C. — There are Northern Lights in the sky on this Thursday evening! It's a rare sight to see them in the Carolinas, but there's enough solar energy to make them visible across much of the country tonight. The WFMY News 2 Weather team is tracking it.
How Can You Spot Them?
There are a few things to keep in mind if you're trying to see the Northern Lights.
- Get away from city lights as best as you can. The darker the better!
- Take a look from now until Midnight. That's the forecasted time of most activity with this event.
- Allow your eyes time to adjust.
- Look north or northeast!
- Use night mode on your phone, or long exposure on a camera. It can see more than your eyes can by letting in more light over time.
- Be patient! Sometimes the Aurora comes in waves.
They're Being Seen!
We've gotten reports from across the Piedmont of beautiful displays this evening. Keep in mind, it looks dimmer with your naked eye and better with a camera.
What causes the Northern Lights?
The Northern Lights can be seen when energy from the sun moves toward Earth and interacts with our magnetic field. The result is the bright color you may see in pictures.
Scientists track these bursts of energy from the sun, called Coronal Mass Ejections, and they've spotted a big one arriving right now.
These solar storms can put on some really good displays of Aurora, the technical term for the Northern Lights. That means there may be a chance to see them even here in the Carolinas on Thursday evening.
