WEATHER KAHNNECTIONS: May 2005 Archives

NORTHERN LIGHTS ILLUMINATE CHICAGO'S SKIES LAST NIGHT

Chicagoans were treated to a dazzling display of the aurora borealis or northern lights early Sunday morning, following a strong solar flare on the sun on Friday May 13. The display was visible across much of the United States with reports of sightings as far south as southern California. According to NASA scientests, last night's aurora storm was caused by a coronal mass ejection (CME) propelled in our direction by an M8-class explosion near sunspot 759 that left the sun on May 13. Eighteen hours later it reached the Earth's atmosphere sparking the bright auroras.

Though far from a certainty, it is possible the aurora may be visible again tonight, especially in Canada, Alaska and areas north of Chicago.

One of our viewers Al Degutis took some spectacular pictures of the aurora from Woodstock and was kind enough to allow us to post them on our weather blog.

Photo by Al Degutis