Chance to see northern lights returns: Here’s where aurora may be visible

(NEXSTAR) – The chance to view the northern lights returns for several U.S. states this weekend as a solar storm blasts magnetic material toward Earth.

The solar storm expected to hit late Friday into early Saturday is categorized as a “G2” in strength, which is much weaker than the “extreme” G5 storms observed earlier this month.

But even G2-level solar activity is enough to make northern lights visible in northern states. The aurora forecast for Friday night shows the best chances along the U.S.-Canada border, though the line of visibility dips down into Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine.

If you’re looking to spot the northern lights, point your gaze in the direction of the northern horizon. 

Using your phone camera can also help. Newer phones have lenses that are much more sensitive to light than our eyes, so they can capture the aurora even when it’s not visible with the naked eye.

Aurora activity has been more common lately as the sun gets closer to solar maximum.

“During the Sun’s natural 11-year cycle, the Sun shifts from relatively calm to stormy, then back again,” explained Nicola Fox, the director of NASA’s heliophysics division. “At its most active, called solar maximum, the Sun is freckled with sunspots and its magnetic poles reverse.”

Coronal mass ejections, or CMEs, form near those sunspots. CMEs are essentially explosions of plasma and magnetic material shooting out of the sun. When they hit our magnetic field, currents send particles flowing to poles, and that’s what causes the aurora, or northern lights, to appear in our skies.

Addy Bink contributed to this report.