See rare and stunning northern lights color the sky over Yellowstone and Grand Teton
Northern lights sparkled over two national parks in the West, thanks to a “severe” geomagnetic storm.
The rare display was visible from Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks from April 23 to April 24.
“Rarely do the Tetons get upstaged, but the aurora borealis came to visit the valley,” Grand Teton National Park said in a Facebook post.
Grand Teton and Yellowstone are both in western Wyoming. Yellowstone also stretches into Idaho and Montana.
Photos of the northern lights show “colorful plumes” dancing across the sky.
The aurora borealis reached unusually low latitudes during this storm, causing more than 30 states to catch a glimpse of the dazzling display, Yellowstone National Park said in a Facebook post.
Among the states getting a show were Colorado, Utah, California, Arizona, Texas and Arkansas, according to SpaceWeather.com.
The level-four geomagnetic storm was caused by the eruption of a coronal mass ejection on the sun on April 21, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said.
“Ejected plasma from the eruption traveled at nearly two million miles per hour toward Earth,” NOAA said.
A ”severe” solar storm could cause issues to electrical power systems, including “possible widespread voltage control problems and some protective systems will mistakenly trip out key assets from the grid,” according to NOAA.
But it’s unlikely people will be directly affected by the storms except for being able to see the bright lights, the agency said.
The best way to see the northern lights is away from city light pollution and between the times of 10 p.m. and 2 a.m.
This story was originally published April 24, 2023 at 3:58 PM with the headline "See rare and stunning northern lights color the sky over Yellowstone and Grand Teton."
