The Northern Lights Will Be Visible Monday & Tuesday in Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts

The aurora borealis, or northern lights, has become a stereotypical part of any image or video of the artic.

Any time that a movie or TV producer, or an artist, wants you to know that the setting is Alaska, Northern Canada, or the arctic, they always show the glittering lights of the aurora borealis.

Of course, it makes sense, because normally you need to go way up north in order to see the northern lights.

Unless, of course, there is particularly strong solar activity.

Apparently, that is what we are dealing with this week.

According to an article on the Weather.com website, a powerful geomagnetic storm from the sun is rolling in and it could light up the northern skies with a stunning burst of auroras.

NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center issued a special alert on Sunday, calling for a strong G3 storm through midday on Tuesday, December 9th.

This storm activity comes after what NOAA describes as a full halo coronal mass ejection, which is essentially a major burst of plasma from the sun triggered by a strong solar flare on December 6th.

Space weather can be a little unpredictable, but the current outlook has the northern lights shining late Monday night and into the early hours of Tuesday morning.  There is also a chance they return Tuesday night.

NOAA says the glow could reach an impressive list of states including Alaska, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, both Dakotas, Nebraska, Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and of course right here in Maine.

Folks from the lower Midwest to Oregon may also get lucky.

The really good news for us is that most of New England will have clear skies tonight.

The best way to see the aurora borealis is to get away from major light sources.  Find a back road or a field where you are away from town and your neighbors.

And, of course, you are going to want to face north.

If you do manage to get any good pictures of the northern lights, please share them with us.