Strong geomagnetic storm could bring northern lights to Midwest this week
NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center issued a Strong, level 3 out of 5, Geomagnetic Storm Watch for Thursday and Friday. If the solar storm timing lines up, northern lights could dance across the sky as far south as Illinois.
After multiple eruptions from the sun, the aurora borealis could be visible as far south as Illinois, though June viewing conditions can be tricky.
Northern lights could become visible across parts of the northern tier late this week, but space weather forecasters are still determining how powerful the geomagnetic storm could become.
NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC) issued a Strong, level 3 out of 5, Geomagnetic Storm Watch for Thursday and Friday. If the solar storm timing lines up, northern lights could dance across the sky as far south as Illinois.
The storm watch came after back-to-back blasts of particles from the sun, known as coronal mass ejections (CMEs), were sent hurtling toward Earth. When those particles interact with Earth’s magnetic field and atmosphere, they can trigger colorful auroras.
"The current forecast calls for combined CME arrival around mid-afternoon EDT of June 4, with up to G3 levels possible afterwards," the SWPC said on Thursday. "CME passage would likely continue into the evening and possibly overnight hours of June 5."
The CME activity is associated with multiple solar flares, including an X1.0 flare on Wednesday. X-class flares are the most intense on NOAA’s space weather scales, followed by M-class flares. Two M-class flares occurred earlier Tuesday.
NOAA SWPC Service Coordinator Shawn Dahl said interesting things have been happening on the sun leading up to this week’s potentially strong solar storm. Space weather forecasters are watching about 10 groups of sunspots for additional CME activity.
If strong storm criteria are met, it would be the first strong solar storm since April.
What to expect when viewing the aurora in June
Late spring is not the best time for northern lights viewing because of later sunsets and fewer hours of darkness. Still, if a geomagnetic storm becomes strong to extreme, the northern lights can put on a good show and even appear as far south as Florida.
Northern lights viewing conditions on June 4, 2026.
To view the lights, skygazers should get away from light pollution by turning off outdoor lights or moving away from city lights. If nothing appears to the naked eye, a smartphone camera may provide better results.
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