Overview

• NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center predicts a Kp index of 3 on July 16 and 17, indicating brighter auroral activity moving farther from the poles.
• The display could be seen from Alaska through parts of the upper Midwest and Great Plains, including Montana, North Dakota, northern Minnesota, northern Wisconsin and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
• Best viewing is between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. local time at high, north-facing spots away from city lights under clear skies.
• This marks back-to-back aurora nights amid elevated geomagnetic activity driven by the ongoing solar maximum.
• Skywatchers can enjoy the phenomenon with the naked eye and capture it on smartphones by enabling night-mode settings.