Thane Grauel

tgrauel@lohud.com

Update: Second chance to see northern lights Saturday night.

Move over, Supermoon. The ionosphere will put on a spectacular show Friday night.

Massive solar flares earlier this week on the sun are now reaching Earth, and the charged particles known as ions will excite gases in the upper atmosphere, making them glow. The aurora borealis, or northern lights, is usually visible only much closer to the magnetic north pole (the same phenomenon in the southern hemisphere is the aurora australis).

What's different this time is that the show might be visible as far south as Maryland in the East, and Nebraska to the west, according to Space.com.

AccuWeather meteorlogist Tom Kines says viewing is usually best after midnight, but don't wait too long. Clouds might move in around 2 or 3 a.m. in the New York area. He recommends getting away from areas with lots of streetlights.

"You've got to get out to the countryside," he said, and "let your eyes adjust. It takes 15 to 20 minutes."

Then simply look to the north. If you're lucky, you'll see the sky glowing red and green.

"It's actually pretty neat," Kines said.

But the postcard from the center of our solar system also has a downside.

AccuWeather.com astronomer Hunter Outten says, "Along with the brilliant light display that may be visible to some in the northern part of the country, a flare of this magnitude could also have adverse effects on GPS, radio frequencies and cellphone and satellite reception as well."

The flare is ranked as an X-class, the highest class for a solar flare. A "geomagnetic storm" in Earth's atmosphere is expected around midday Friday.

And that Supermoon everyone was crazy about earlier this week on Facebook won't be your friend Friday night – it could actually dull views of the colorful light show in the ionosphere. Kines said the moon rises about 9:30 p.m. Friday.

Clouds shouldn't be too much of a problem in the New York metro area. AccuWeather expects Friday night to be mostly clear, with a low around 51. Though Saturday will be cloudy, skies could clear in time to view the northern lights again, though they're not expected be as strong as Friday.

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