Northern lights could again be visible in Chicago in wake of solar storms

The northern lights could be visible in Chicago again Monday night and possibly through Thursday after a series of solar storms, National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration officials said.

The NOAA says the storms won’t affect electronics or radio signals, but they could expand the area where the lights are visible.

Shawn Dahl, the SWPC service coordinator and a senior space weather forecaster with the NOAA, said the most likely window for the Chicago area is between 11 p.m. and 2 a.m., though odds are even better before midnight when the moon still hasn’t risen.

This round of aurora borealis likely won’t be as strong as the ones in May, when they reached G4 and G5 on a five-point scale, which is used to measure geomagnetic storms, solar radiation storms and potential radio blackouts in the aftermath of those, Dahl said. Those working at power grids start paying attention around G3 to monitor for potential interference, though it's unlikely at that level.

This week’s storms are expected to reach a maximum of G3, though Dahl wasn’t ruling anything out until the storms were closer to satellites capable of detecting their speed and makeup of the magnetic field they bring once they’re about 92 million miles away from the sun. This also means it's even harder to predict what the impact will be on aurora borealis and when it could appear.

“Is it possible? Absolutely,” Dahl told the Sun-Times on Monday afternoon. “But we certainly don’t have as high a level of confidence.”

More solar activity is expected later in the week, Dahl said.

In terms of viewing the northern lights, though, Monday night was likely the best chance at viewing the lights with storms expected to come through in the next several days and block visibility, said Brett Borchardt, a senior meteorologist with the National Weather Service.

“Tonight may be the best night for viewing purposes of the next few nights,” Borchardt said Monday. “There should be mostly clear skies after midnight, but open and rural areas may have fog.”

Michelle Nichols, the Adler Planetarium’s director of public observing, said the lights can be “predictably unpredictable,” so “cross your fingers” that the conditions will be right to see them.

“Auroras are usually fairly dim, so getting out away from city lights is best,” Nichols told the Sun-Times in a statement. “No one single location is best to go to. If you are looking toward the north and you are in a spot south of the city, going to the southwest or west could be better so you aren't looking over the entire light-polluted expanse of Chicago.”

Dahl also said NOAA reports will be updated every three hours on the agency’s website, with alerts on whether or not the storms are strong or hitting the Earth. He too recommends getting away from city lights to get a better view.

“Just enjoy the opportunity to see the Northern Lights,” Dahl said. “It’s a good opportunity to drive outside the city lights so people can see if they can see it.”