The sun sure has woken up this week, unleashing a powerful X-class solar flare on Jan. 18 that hurled a colossal, fast-moving coronal mass ejection (CME) directly toward Earth. That CME has now arrived, triggering severe (G4) geomagnetic storm conditions far earlier than initially forecast.

A strong geomagnetic storm could interact with Earth's atmosphere within the next 24 hours, bringing the potential for northern lights much further south in the U.S.

The northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, are caused by electrically charged particles that interact with the Earth’s atmosphere and are heated, creating light displays. Increased solar activity makes the northern lights appear more frequently.

A rare solar storm is lighting skies far from the poles, thrilling observers while quietly threatening satellites, power grids, and navigation systems, as scientists track what happens next worldwide closely.

“This is the longest continuous series of images ever created for a single active region: It’s a milestone in solar physics,” said Kontogiannis. With the Solar Orbiter, the team was able to watch as the magnetic tempest formed, became increasingly complex, flared, and then decayed.