[🌌EUROPE, GET OUT OF THE HOUSE IF YOU SEE THIS POST]
GUIDE TO HUNTING AURORA FROM THE SUPERSOLAR STORM - ONE OF THE STRONGEST STORMS IN 20 YEARS
📖 What happened on the Sun?
About 3 days ago, at the active region AR4143, the Sun emitted an X1.9 flare – one of the strongest in the solar flare scale.
This is an area prone to coronal mass ejection (CME) directed straight towards Earth.
Last night, the first plasma wave hit Earth, pushing the geomagnetic storm intensity to G4 level (4/5), with Kp reaching a maximum of 9/9.
When Kp = 9, the aurora is pushed deep south, opening up observation opportunities for areas that rarely see aurora, including France, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, and many other European countries.
📈 Solar wind indices – truly "unreal"
• Solar wind speed: > 1,100 km/s
(about ~4 times faster than normal)
• Plasma density: ~ 50 protons/cm³
• Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF)
• Bz: –58 nT
• Bt: +50 nT
✨ 4 SIMPLE STEPS TO HUNT THE FULL SUPERSTORM
- Determine the correct observation direction
If you are at:
• Very high latitude (Lapland): tonight point the camera south or straight up high.
• Near the auroral oval (Helsinki, Tallinn, St. Petersburg): aurora may appear right overhead
• Lower latitudes (Germany, Netherlands, France): point camera north, or angled high up
Quick way to determine: open the compass on your phone, identify the direction, then point the camera in the appropriate direction for your location.
- Determine the observation time
The Sun is releasing a huge amount of plasma, however, the magnetic field direction is the deciding factor for whether the aurora will light up or not.
Time frame to monitor: from 18:00 evening to 03:00–04:00 the next morning.
- Avoid light pollution
Tonight, the aurora is strong enough to be visible even in areas with streetlights. However, to see clear colors and take beautiful photos, you should still move to a sufficiently dark area.
How to determine: search Light Pollution Map on Google to select a suitable observation point around where you are. The farther from the auroral oval, the more important this factor is.
- Avoid cloud cover
Aurora occurs at 80–100 km altitude, so if your area has thick clouds, observation chance will be almost zero.
Check cloud forecasts and find low-cloud areas within your travel range, while still ensuring it's dark enough and in the right direction.
🌠 Wish everyone success in hunting this solar superstorm!
P/S:
Not just Europe – the US, Australia, and many other areas around the world also have full opportunities to observe this rare phenomenon
Cre: Long Nguyen
