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"G4 (Severe) Geomagnetic Storm Watch for 20 January UTC-Day" by NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center SWPC - G4 (Kp=8) geomagnetic storm conditions forecast for January 20 0600-0900 UTC, favoring tonight in the Americas for aurora viewing. spaceweather.gov/news/g4-sever… #NOAA #SpaceWeather #CME #Aurora #AuroraBorealis #AuroraAustralis
NOAA image caption: A G4 (Severe) geomagnetic storm watch is in effect for the 20 January UTC-day due to Earth-arrival of a coronal mass ejection (CME). The CME blasted from the Sun on 18 Jan, in association with an energetic R3 (Strong) solar flare from a sunspot region near center-disk, and is anticipated to arrive at Earth as early as late 19 Jan EST to early 20 Jan. While the G4 Watch is out for the 20 Jan UTC-day, geomagnetic storm levels could range from G1-G3 (Minor-Moderate) upon CME arrival later on 19 Jan EST. CME passage is expected to continue through 20 Jan, but conditions are likely to weaken later in the day. G1 levels remain possible on 21 Jan due to residual CME related effects. Forecasters have a fair measure of confidence in timing and of CME arrival at Earth. Please continue to visit our SWPC webpage for the latest forecasts, information, and updates. source: https://www.spaceweather.gov/news/g4-severe-geomagnetic-storm-watch-20-january-utc-day

G4 (Severe) Geomagnetic Storm Watch for 20 January UTC-Day | NOAA / NWS Space Weather Prediction Center

www.spaceweather.gov
#aurora #auroraborealis #noaa #auroraaustralis #CME #spaceweather
in reply to Astro Hawk (Ian Kluft) ✅🚀🛰️

Astro Hawk (Ian Kluft) ✅🚀🛰️
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Astro Hawk (Ian Kluft) ✅🚀🛰️
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It's somewhat ironic that yesterday I drove 3 hours to Seattle to get pictures of Aurora Borealis livery on a 787-9. But tonight it looks like the solar storm and real aurora may have ended earlier than forecast around West Coast sunset. So I paused the decision to go for pictures, and have not seen encouraging data yet. Good viewing spots would be up to 1 hour away. Kp has bumped back up to 5. But in Oregon I'd need 7 or it isn't happening down here. avgeek.social/@ikluft/11591982…
Alaska Airlines 787-9 N784HA seen departing from Runway 16L at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport SEA for Honolulu HNL. Landing gear is in the process of retracting. cropped and scaled but no other processing photo by Ian Kluft Des Moines, Washington, USA January 18, 2026
screenshot from NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center showing the auroral oval touching the northernmost states of the Lower 48, considerably less active than the forecasts for tonight looked last night

Ian Kluft ✅✈️🎈🌋 (@ikluft@avgeek.social)

Attached: 3 images I went for a day trip to Seattle today to try to catch the #Alaska787 #N784HA with Aurora Borealis livery. I got it! The weather was perfect except for unavoidable low sun angle of winter.
Ian Kluft ✅✈️🎈🌋 (AvGeekSocial)
This entry was edited (3 weeks ago)
in reply to Astro Hawk (Ian Kluft) ✅🚀🛰️

Astro Hawk (Ian Kluft) ✅🚀🛰️
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Astro Hawk (Ian Kluft) ✅🚀🛰️
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Good thing I woke up and checked the aurora in the middle of the night. Kp=8 storm level! Just like in May 2024, I could see aurora while driving on I-84 before reaching the viewing points. I got aurora pictures from near I-84 east of Portland at Multnomah Falls and a vista point at Corbett. But the Columbia River Gorge was clouded over at Bonneville Dam and Cascade Locks. So I turned around. #SpaceWeather #aurora #AuroraBorealis #astronomy #weather #ORwx #PNW
Aurora Borealis viewed from the Multnomah Falls parking lot in the median of I-84 25 miles east of Portland. handheld cell phone photo in night mode photo by Ian Kluft January 20, 2026 Multnomah Falls, Oregon, USA
Aurora Borealis viewed from the Multnomah Falls parking lot in the median of I-84 25 miles east of Portland. handheld cell phone photo in night mode photo by Ian Kluft January 20, 2026 Multnomah Falls, Oregon, USA
Aurora Borealis viewed from a vista point near Corbett off I-84 20 miles east of Portland. The Columbia River is in the foreground. handheld cell phone photo in night mode photo by Ian Kluft January 20, 2026 Corbett, Oregon, USA
Looking west, the city lights of Portland are on the left and Aurora Borealis on the right, viewed from a vista point near Corbett off I-84 20 miles east of Portland. The Columbia River is in the foreground. handheld cell phone photo in night mode photo by Ian Kluft January 20, 2026 Corbett, Oregon, USA
#astronomy #weather #pnw #aurora #auroraborealis #spaceweather #orwx
in reply to Astro Hawk (Ian Kluft) ✅🚀🛰️

Astro Hawk (Ian Kluft) ✅🚀🛰️
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Astro Hawk (Ian Kluft) ✅🚀🛰️
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"Aurora Coolness" by XKCD comic - Cartoonist Randall shares his experience with attempts and observations of aurora, many hours watching and only minutes at a time for the best views. But the best aurora views won't happen without going out and trying for a look. xkcd.com/3196/ #SpaceWeather #aurora #AuroraBorealis #AuroraAustralis #astronomy
XKCD comic #3196 "Aurora Coolness" https://xkcd.com/3196/ explanation from ExplainXCKD wiki https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/3196:_Aurora_Coolness transcript: A graph of “aurora coolness” over many hours. The coolness starts at “visible glow on the horizon, color only visible in photos” and gradually moves up and down to “spectacular ribbons of color spanning the sky and illuminating the landscape”, which is is labeled “5 or 10 minutes”, then gradually goes back down, almost getting all the way up, and eventually ending back at “visible glow on the horizon, color only visible in photos”. Title text: I've had countless nights where the line never left the bottom zone of the graph, but the few moments where it's climbed all the way to the top have made up for them all. explanation (truncated to fit alt-text): The graph in this comic reports events during an aurora rated on 'coolness' over time, and shows that truly interesting events are fairly frequent, but often short-lived and not predictable. Both the caption and the title text encourage the viewer of an aurora to be patient with the 'boring' stuff, as more exciting events could happen with little or no notice. The caption gives general advice, while the title text reports Randall's own experiences. The comic was published at around the time when low-latitude auroras were particularly anticipated to be visible, and may even have been displaying themselves to Randall in the immediate run-up to publication[...]

Aurora Coolness

xkcd
#astronomy #aurora #auroraborealis #auroraaustralis #spaceweather
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