Overview
- NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center forecasts a G1 (Minor) geomagnetic storm late Thursday into early Friday, opening a window for aurora visibility overnight January 8–9.
- The best viewing period is most likely between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. local time, with the greatest chances in dark locations with a clear view of the northern horizon.
- Higher-latitude areas such as Alaska, Washington, Idaho, Montana, the Dakotas, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan and Maine have the best odds, with only northern New England seeing a low chance and metro Boston unlikely.
- NOAA attributes the activity primarily to a co-rotating interaction region compounded by a coronal mass ejection that left the Sun on January 6, while some forecasters note a coronal-hole high-speed stream could also contribute.
- Visibility remains uncertain due to variables like solar-wind orientation, cloud cover and moonlight, so observers should monitor NOAA’s 30-minute aurora forecast and live-data apps; faint displays may photograph better than they appear to the eye.