Go out and look for the aurora borealis! They are visible in western NC

[NewHendoLib]

The sky to the north looks pink - even overhead toward the south there are faint pink "curtains" moving about.

If it is clear where you are and you are at the center of the US northward, so look and see what you can see!

I haven't seen them in over 40 years - faint - but so cool!

[QED]

1. My nephew posted pics from Atlanta

Magenta skies! Beautiful!

I don't know if I'll see anything by me - I'm further south but I'm gonna try.

[Takket]

2. Im in Michigan. Don't see a thing but weatherman says he's getting photos.

[ybbor]

16. We saw them in Ann Arbor

Greens, blues and Reds. My friends saw saw sick stuff. I saw the classic streaks, and full sky color. Pretty sweet to see in a city with all of the light pollution.

[wcmagumba]

3. Been checking here in south Central Kansas...

See a little pink but I am in a small town and north is a medium size city so there might be light pollution...I do have a cheapo porch cam and it is more sensitive to color apparently and can see a pretty dark pink area to the NW...

[AZSkiffyGeek]

4. Friend in Minnesota just posted some amazing pics

I’m seeing reports they may wven be visible outside Phoenix depending on light pollution.

[marybourg]

25. Not seein' nuttin west of PHX. Dark sky, light clouds, many stars visible.

[AZSkiffyGeek]

34. Friends got some in Gilbert and Mesa

Some pink and purple haze. My wife and I are going to go looking tomorrow night.

[blm]

5. Just went out to look after you posted.

Thank you!

Never expected to witness it.

[Dear_Prudence]

6. Sw ohio

Visible in SWOhio until about 10 minutes ago. Beautiful

[Permanut]

7. Waiting for sundown here in Oregon..

I'll be out later!

[0rganism]

12. Likewise

I read there should be some good visuals after midnight, haven't seen them myself in 34 years

[oregonjen]

35. Clear skies in Oregon gave us quite a treat!

So beautiful right in my own backyard! Were you able to get out and see them?

[MurrayDelph]

43. You're lucky

It was overcast on the northern Oregon Coast. Here I was, in the northernmost part of the state, and bupkis.

[Ohio Joe]

8. Just east of Boulder Colorado I cannot see it

I’d really like to

[evemac]

10. Also looking in Boulder

[LeftInTX]

9. South Texas: Can't see it.

[mainer]

11. Spectacular in Maine!

I’ve seen it in Iceland and this is even better, with vivid colors visible to the naked eye. Usually you need a 3 sec camera exposure to see different colors, but not tonight.

[MissB]

13. Even if you can't see them

Try to take a photo!

My kid in Pittsburgh says they aren’t visible to the naked eye but he’s capturing amazing images on his phone.

[LeftInTX]

15. I tried that too. My photos came out plain old black..LOL

[tornado34jh]

26. You have to do long exposure photography to really see it

A lot of them are probably from there. I saw on spaceweather.com that they captured what are called deep-sky aurora in southern Florida.

[LeftInTX]

40. I tried a 15 sec exposure. I think these are clouds however.

There were a few images out of San Antonio a few hours before I shot these. I think they were taken with increased shutter times, because it looked like daylight. I think it was already gone and likely too cloudy when I shot these at 2:26 am.

Latitude 29.5 N
Looking straight up:



Looking north:

[Cadfael]

14. Cloudy here now

But we had a brief break in the clouds earlier and I got this photo

[niyad]

19. Splendid!!!

[DENVERPOPS]

24. Where is here?????? NC

[Cadfael]

27. Northern Illinois

western suburbs of Chicago
this was at 9:10 pm and by 9:44 pm it looked like this (much more usual for any much anticipated astronomy type event)

[DENVERPOPS]

30. Amazing

we are in Denver, and reports are that we need to go to at least Wyoming to see them.......Bummer

Our granddaughter in Northern Vermont, just called at 11:00 Mountain Time, and she says the view from there is spectacular.
She said they didn't even have to leave the city............

[CaliforniaPeggy]

28. So lovely, plus I see the moon! K&R nt

[catbyte]

17. It's cloudy where I am in Michigan, dang it.

[niyad]

18. Alas, too far off the path, I think, and it is cloudy.

[ShazzieB]

20. It's rainy and overcast here in northern Illinois.

Should be nice an.d clear tomorrow night, so I'm still hopeful.

[GB_RN]

21. Nice!

I’m jealous. It’s cold and rainy here on the other side of NC. No auroras for me. 🤬👎

[tornado34jh]

22. Tried to get photographic aurora here in Lakeland

No dice. Too many obstructions and too much light pollution

[DENVERPOPS]

23. Our granddaughter just called (at 11:00 Mountain Time)

She is in Northern Vermont and said it is spectacular there..........She just emailed us pictures.....WOW

In the Denver/Boulder areas outside of the city not showing much if anything.

[Dem2theMax]

29. I'm so sad. It's the only thing on my bucket list.

And I'm too far south to see it.
But I'm happy for everyone who can.

[Ocelot II]

31. Too much light pollution in Minneapolis, so I got in the car and headed north

on I-35. Made it about halfway to Duluth, got off the interstate and wandered around back roads where it was really dark, and got this:

[LeftInTX]

38. I lived near Hwy 41 just south of Appleton, WI. Never really saw much even though they were there.

My dad (a meteorologist) would point them out and I thought they looked like clouds.

[Sympthsical]

32. Very visible from northern Bay Area

I live next to a vineyard I use for amateur astronomy. Big expanse of sky, less light pollution, no street lamps.

It is neat-o.

[intrepidity]

39. Wow, beautiful

I'm up on the Russian River, went out around midnight but everything was dark. Course, I live under a canopy of trees, but even between them didn't see anything. Maybe tonight?

[Sympthsical]

44. There's another possibility tonight

They're not sure how strong they may or may not be, but definitely worth looking. I'm going to go out again tonight around 11pm to see.

A few things to keep in mind. A lot of the photos you're seeing - including mine - are far more vivid than what the human eye sees. Phone cameras with night mode (2-5 second exposure) capture more light. You need 15-30 minutes for your eyes to fully adjust to darkness, and if you look at your phone or other lights, you have to start over.

At first, I couldn't see anything with my naked eye. I just snapped a first pic and caught something, so I knew I should stay. Over about 90 mins, they kept getting stronger and stronger, and my eyes adjusted more and more. By the time I went home, the whole northern sky looked very vividly pink to me. To the point I could make out the "curtains" with the naked eye.

But if you just walk outside and glance, it may look to you like there's nothing at all because your eyes aren't adjusted. Check with a long exposure camera, and it might show you they're there.

[intrepidity]

48. Thanks for all the info

Here are more from the area:

https://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/news/reader-photos-northern-lights-sonoma-county/?artslide=4

You should send them yours!

[Emile]

33. Western Indiana cloud cover.

[brakester]

36. Western North Carolina

I captured a photo of a magenta sky last night at 4 am. The first time I've ever "seen" them.

My eyes couldn't register the color, but my phone camera did!

[brakester]

37. Western North Carolina

I captured a photo of a magenta sky last night at 4 am. The first time I've ever "seen" them.

My eyes couldn't register the color, but my phone camera did!

[elocs]

41. Pass. n/t

[tornado34jh]

42. It apparently was seen much further south than expected, even seen in the Caribbean

I saw on spaceweather.com that they were seen in Mazatlan in southern Mexico and even Puerto Rico, which is only about 18 degrees N, so they are saying this is among the most extensive auroral displays in the last 500 years.

[cliffside]

45. Use Night mode on your iPhone, link ...

https://support.apple.com/en-us/102519#:~:text=Adjust%20the%20capture%20time&text=Tap%20the%20Night%20mode%20button,which%20extends%20the%20capture%20time

You can try this before dark if you put your phone on a flat surface that does not let light in, then you can adjust the exposure time to the max. First time I tried it on a table and it would only allow exposure time of 12s. Other surfaces allowed me to increase to 30s. Good luck!

Hopefully in the Mid-Atlantic we'll have some breaks in the clouds tonight and will try setting the exposure to 30s.

"On supported iPhone models, you can use Night mode to capture photos when the camera detects a low-light environment.
You can use Night mode with iPhone 11 and later.

Take low-light photos with Night mode
Night mode automatically turns on when the camera detects a low-light environment. The Night mode iconNo alt supplied for Image at the top of the display turns yellow when the feature is active. Depending on how dark the scene is, your iPhone might take a Night mode photo quickly, or it might take several seconds. You can also adjust your exposure setting..."

[NewHendoLib]

46. Pixel's Android night sight is a 3 second exposure and worked well for me last night

[cliffside]

47. Thanks for letting me know, I'll try different times! nt