Subsiding geomagnetic storm with beautifull auroras

The expected CME impact sparked aurora lights around the Arctic Circle on Feb. 14th. The display was probably caused by a CME, launched from the sun on Feb. 10th. Solar wind poured in and fueled a G1-class geomagnetic storm (Kp index was at level 5). Our geomagnetic field has since returned to more quieter levels (Kp=4 right now).

Today on Feb. 15th, the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) near Earth tilted south, opening a crack in Earth’s magnetic field as we wrote in our earlier post.

NOAA/SWPC in the latest alert report about potential impacts in areas  primarily poleward of 65 degrees
geomagnetic latitude with possible weak power grid fluctuations. Aurora may be visible at high latitudes such as Canada and Alaska.

All current sunspot regions remain stable and there is no chance for strong solar flares at this time. The next region expected to return onto the eastern limb, will be old region 1408 within the next couple of days.

For more updates please visit: SpaceWeather, SolarHam, NOAA/SWPC

Featured image: Aurora display seen above Kjell Henriksen Observatory (KHO) outside of Longyearbyen in Svalbard on February 14th (Credit: Ashton Seth Reimer)