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Updraft® - Minnesota Weather News
Paul Huttner

Strong geomagnetic storm could spark northern lights Thursday night above Minnesota

Best chance for seeing aurora across northern Minnesota

Aurora forecast
Aurora forecast
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Space Weather Prediction Center

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I’m saying there’s a chance.

A strong (G3 class) geomagnetic storm on the sun is sending pulses of energy toward Earth. As the particles interact with Earth’s magnetosphere, they may trigger a display of northern lights Thursday night and possibly again Friday night.

You can see the southward extent of the auroral oval across Minnesota in the image at the top of this post.

The kP index has reached 7 at times with this storm.

kP index
kP index
NOAA

The first waves from this solar storm already produced northern lights early Thursday morning. MPR News meteorologist Sven Sundgaard’s dad Kip captured this amazing shot in western Wisconsin early Thursday morning:

Aurora
Aurora near St. Croix Falls, Wis., in the predawn hours Thursday.
Courtesy of Kip Sundgaard

You know the drill. The best chance to see northern lights is to get away from city lights with a clear view of the northern horizon. Some lingering wildfire smoke aloft could make viewing of any aurora a little more fuzzy.

Good luck!

Aug-tember continues

Our August weather pattern lingers well into September this year. Highs again will reach the 80s across Minnesota on Friday.

Forecast high temperatures Friday
Forecast high temperatures Friday
NOAA

Francine moisture Saturday

Some of the remnant tropical moisture from Hurricane Francine will slide up the Mississippi River Valley, brush western Wisconsin and could clip eastern Minnesota Saturday. Scattered rain and some thunder are likely east of the Twin Cities.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s NAM 3 km model loop shows the trends on Saturday:

NOAA NAM 3 km model
North American Mesoscale 3 km model Saturday
NOAA, via Tropical Tidbits

Our seemingly endless summer lasts through most of next week with highs generally in the 80s. Weather patterns for the remainder of September strongly favor warmer-than-normal weather.

NOAA 8 to 14-day temperature outlook
8 to 14-day temperature outlook
NOAA

Enjoy our extended summer.