Severe solar storms may light up the northern horizon in Colorado on Monday with the vibrant colors of the aurora borealis, according to space weather forecasters.
A burst of energy from the sun, known as a coronal mass ejection, arrived at Earth at about 12:20 p.m. in the Mountain time zone, a few hours earlier than anticipated.
“And it arrived with a punch,” Shawn Dahl, service coordinator at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Space Weather Prediction Center in Boulder, said in a video on the social media platform X.
SWPC Video Update from Shawn Dahl, SWPC Service Coordinator about the severe G4 and S4 ongoing storms. Apologies for the hastiness of this, but we have been very busy notifying aviation, power grid, FEMA, and more about these storms. Stay aware at
— NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center (@NWSSWPC)
Dahl said the geomagnetic storm already reached “severe” G4levels, one level away from the strongest storm on the five-step scale.
“We haven’t seen one at this level since the year 2003,” he added. “This is all related to a strong solar flare that happened yesterday.”
Dahl said the storm was at G3 on the scale Monday evening, but could grow to a G4 or even a G5, depending on circumstances. G4 storms can cause widespread voltage control problems, disorient spacecraft and satellite navigation systems, disrupt radio frequencies and more, according to the space weather agency.
NOAA was in touch with the Federal Emergency Management Agency and other government agencies, as well as operators of the country’s electric grid, Dahl said.
“We are making all these phone calls to ensure that we are keeping all the critical technological infrastructure operators in the know of whatap happening,” he said.
Northern Colorado will be on the southern edge of the northern lights’ potential viewing range, according to a from the Space Weather Prediction Center. The aurora borealis is unlikely to appear overhead, but Coloradans may be able to view it on the state’s northern horizon.
The best chance to see the lights will be on the northeastern plains, along the Colorado-Wyoming border or, if explorers have time to make the drive, further north into Wyoming.
Coloradans aiming for the best view should get far away from the city lights and check a for clear spots. If the aurora borealis isn’t visible to the naked eye, it may appear while using the long-exposure setting on a camera or phone.
The northern lights last appeared in Colorado in November, sending waves of pink and green into the sky across the state.
