[🌌EUROPE GET OUT OF THE HOUSE IF YOU SEE THIS POST]
GUIDE TO HUNT AURORA FROM SUPER SOLAR 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 – in the strongest class on 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 observation opportunities for areas that rarely see aurora, including France, Italy, Germany, Netherlands, and many other European countries.
📈 Solar wind indices – truly "unreal"
• Solar wind speed: > 1,100 km/s
(~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 THIS SUPER STORM FULLY
- Determine the correct observation direction
If you are at:
• Very high latitude (Lapland): tonight point camera south or straight up high.
• Near 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 compass on phone, identify direction then turn camera to suitable direction for your location.
- Determine observation time
The Sun is releasing a huge amount of plasma, however the magnetic field direction is the key factor deciding if aurora will light up or not.
Time frame to monitor: from 18:00 evening to 03:00–04:00 next morning.
- Avoid light pollution
Tonight, aurora is strong enough to be visible even in lit areas. However, to see colors clearly and take beautiful photos, you should still move to a dark enough area.
Way to determine: search Light Pollution Map on Google to choose suitable observation spot around where you are. Areas farther from auroral oval make this factor more important.
- Avoid cloud cover
Aurora occurs at 80–100 km altitude, so if your area has thick clouds, observation chance is nearly zero.
Check cloud forecast and find low-cloud area within travel range, while still ensuring dark enough and correct direction.
🌠 Wish everyone success hunting this solar super storm!
P/S:
Not just Europe – America, Australia and many other world areas also fully have chance to observe this rare phenomenon
Cre: Long Nguyen
