Michiganders, you may want to look up at the sky tonight.

Due to a geomagnetic storm from the sun, skywatchers in many northern cities across the United States could get to see the aurora borealis phenomenon late Sunday night going into early Monday morning, according to NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center.

That includes Detroit, as well as Minneapolis, Chicago, Buffalo and Boston. The aurora could be visible just about anywhere in Michigan late tonight, especially in remote locations with clear skies, sometime between 11 p.m. and 2 a.m.

Of course, your view of the aurora (also known as "northern lights") is weather permitting; some parts of Michigan may experience cloudy skies tonight that would interrupt the light show. Tonight's forecast in Detroit calls for partly cloudy skies.

The event is courtesy of a solar flare, which erupted out of a sunspot late Thursday into early Friday. The flare blasted out X-rays, which caused a minor radio blackout over parts of Asia, the Weather Network reported.

The Space Weather Prediction Center issued a geomagnetic storm warning with a G2 (moderate) classification, saying the aurora may be visible as low as "New York to Wisconsin to Washington state."

The aurora forms when those particles flowing from the sun get caught up in the Earth's magnetic field. The particles interact with molecules of atmospheric gases to cause the famed glowing red and green colors of the aurora.

Doyle Rice of USA TODAY contributed to this story.

Contact Brian Manzullo: bmanzullo@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @BrianManzullo.