Insider Blog: Northern lights could be visible in northern Missouri tonight

Quiet weather is finally settling in for the weekend and if conditions are clear enough overnight we may get a view of an aurora in Mid-Missouri. The Space Weather Prediction Center has issued a severe (G4) geomagnetic storm watch this weekend, the first in nearly 20 years. This high-energy event could send the northern lights as far south as Alabama on Friday night.

Over a half dozen coronal mass ejections (CMEs) are hurtling toward Earth from a sunspot that is nearly 13 times the size of our planet. These CMEs are large masses of plasma flung into space that interact with Earth's magnetic field. The massive amount of energy incoming from these events can disrupt satellites and infrastructure but more commonly will lead to gorgeous auroras at the poles and midlatitudes.

NOAA forecasts that the aurora will be visible on the northern horizon in northern Missouri, including Macon and parts of northern Chariton, Randolph, and Monroe Counties. The best viewing will be between 1 and 4 a.m. and Mid-Missouri should only see partly cloudy skies overnight. You may also try recording a video with your phone as its camera can pick up on more faint traces of the aurora.

Check out some photos of the northern lights on our website.