Aurora borealis, or northern lights, fill the sky on March 13, 2011 over Finnmark. (Photo credit: TORE MEEK/AFP/Getty Images)

By Christy Strawser

DETROIT (CBS Detroit) Last night brought devastating storms to parts of Michigan, but like it’s always darkest before the dawn and spring follows winter, there are good weather things in store.

A series of gorgeous nights are expected to visit much of the country, including metro Detroit, as a serious solar storm pushes the aurora borealis — or northern lights — much farther south than usual.

Metro Detroiters could see the lights Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Your best bet for visibility is between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m., said Jim Keysor, meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Gaylord, Mich.

“It will be visible all through Michigan, particularly on the 25th during the first half of the night, all the way through the state of Michigan,” Keysor said.

He added: “It was visible quite a bit last night, not as much coming up tonight, more so on the 25th.”

Star gazers should cast their eyes to the north as night falls to glimpse the lights.

What do they look like? Observers call them a brilliant show of lights, ranging from bright green to red. They happen when highly charged electrons from solar wind interact with oxygen and nitrogen in the earth’s atmosphere.

Usually the closest they come to this area is in northern Michigan.

Northern lights last night over Sunset Lake near Hugo, MN by @koryhartman pic.twitter.com/MonxLqeIAf — SevereStudios (@severestudios) June 23, 2015

Photos: Northern Lights make for brilliant show over Pacific Northwest – http://t.co/qAmESlaNeP pic.twitter.com/jtR2AMDmvS — KOMO News (@komonews) June 23, 2015

Aurora borealis puts on dazzling show in Colorado sky #northernlights http://t.co/7oRJeVGmqq pic.twitter.com/hGxZ4bGP2D — KDVR FOX31 Denver (@KDVR) June 23, 2015

“The aurora borealis (the Northern Lights) and the aurora australis (the Southern Lights) have always fascinated mankind, and people even travel thousands of miles just to see the brilliant light shows in the earth’s atmosphere,” according to howstuffworks.