Why are we seeing the northern lights in New York?

The northern lights, or aurora borealis, gave a surprise visit over New York and New Jersey overnight due to what forecasters predict a potentially severe geomagnetic storm.

A large chunk of northern US states could likely get a glimpse at the northern lights, according to a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration forecast.

Parts of the northern United States are forecasted to have a high likelihood of seeing the aurora, including Alaska and the northernmost portions of Washington, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, Minnesota, Michigan and Wisconsin.

The best viewing times for aurora is between 10:00pm and 2:00am in areas featuring little to no light pollution and clear skies.

The light pollution in cities is often an obstacle to seeing the northern lights, but experts recommend to find a flat area with a clear view of the horizon.

Even though the forecast was pretty clear Thursday into Friday, First Alert Weather team of CBS News said we are unlikely to have an encore of the show Friday night.

The next supermoon is coming up October 16 into 17 and the Orionids meteor shower peaks around October 20 and 21.

What’s causing so many solar storms? The sun is becoming more and more active as it nears the peak of its current 11-year solar cycle, which started in 2019, as per NASA.

As the peak nears, which is expected to take place in July 2025, geomagnetic storms are more likely to occur. Which would in turn, further increase the chances that the aurora will be visible from the United States, Erica Grow Cei, meteorologist and spokesperson for the SWPC, earlier told the Beacon Journal.

What are the northern lights? How does aurora borealis happen? Auroras are strands of light weaving across Earth’s northern or southern polar regions, according to NASA.

Magnetic storms that are triggered by solar activity, such as solar flares or coronal mass ejections, cause the northern lights.

The solar wind carries charged particles from these events away from the sun.

These energized particles crash with the atmosphere at 45 million mph and are redirected to the poles by the earth’s magnetic field, according to Space.com, which creates the light show.