Northern Lights Dazzle Across Skies After Solar Storm

Image: AFP

12 May 2024

A powerful solar storm, the strongest in over two decades, led to a spectacular display of northern lights across the globe on Friday

Image: Reuters

The colourful display, also known as the aurora borealis, was seen in most parts of Europe

Image: Reuters

The northern lights also illuminated the night sky over some parts of the US, Canada, and Australia

Image: AFP

Geomagnetic storms are caused when explosions of plasma and magnetic fields from the sun's corona are directed at Earth, where they can trigger such aurora displays

Image: AFP

Excited onlookers shared pictures of the lights on social media

Image: AFP

People posed for photos as a geomagnetic storm lights up the night sky above the Bonneville Salt Flats in Wendover, Utah

Image: AFP

US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said storms of this scale could potentially impact infrastructure, including satellites and the power grid

Image: AFP

The northern lights are usually visible in regions located closer to the Earth's magnetic poles like Norway, Sweden, Finland, Iceland, and Alaska

Image: AFP

The last time an extreme geomagnetic storm hit Earth was in 2003

Image: AFP

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