The best stargaze event to watch this August
August is a major moon with stargazing in the Northern Hemisphere and featuring meteor showers, a lineup of rare planets and other celestial highlights.
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The night sky could be lit up over the next few days in the northern states of the Northern United States, thanks to a natural phenomenon known as the aurora.
Researchers at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) report that at least 14 states should be able to see the heavenly glow by Wednesday, August 20th.
According to the National Weather Service, officially known as Aurora Borealis, the colorful night sky is caused by the interaction of Earth’s magnetic field with the solar plasma.
What is a K index?
According to the agency, NOAA predicts a geomagnetic K index of 5. According to NOAA, the index shows how far the aurora is from the pole.
K-Index (also known as KP) stands for “Planetal Index” and is an indicator of the disturbance of the Earth’s magnetic field.
According to NOAA, it ranges from 0 to 9, with a KP score of 3 to 5 indicating brighter activity.
Using geomagnetic storm scales, NOAA ranked the expected events as considered 1-minor occurrences.
Which states will see the Northern Lights this week?
Here’s what this week gives us a glimpse into the aurora, according to NOAA’s map:
- Washington
- Idaho
- Montana
- North Dakota
- South Dakota
- Minnesota
- Wisconsin
- Michigan
- Iowa
- new york
- Vermont
- New Hampshire
- main
- Wyoming
- under
Aurora photos
Contributed by: Melina Khan from USA Today
Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter at USA Today. Contact her at nalund @usatoday.com and follow her at x @nataliealund.
