Driving the news: NOAA has issued a Kp-5 forecast for Saturday night. That puts the aurora borealis in reach for observers across roughly 10 states.
Where to look: Northern Washington, northern Montana, the northern tip of Idaho, the northernmost stretch of Wyoming, North Dakota, northern South Dakota, the northern half of Minnesota, northern Wisconsin, and Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Alaska, as always, leads the list.
By the numbers: - Kp index tonight: 5 ('quite pleasing' visibility) - Kp index Sunday: expected to drop to 4 as activity shifts north - No geomagnetic storms are forecast this weekend
How to catch it: Head out between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. Find high ground. Escape light pollution. Smartphone users: turn on night mode, kill the flash.
Between the lines: 2024 marked a 500-year high in auroral activity. The sun hit the peak of its 11-year solar cycle. That level of intensity is not expected to hold. Sightings will grow rarer the further we move from that peak.
The bottom line: Tonight is a low-drama, high-reward window. No solar storm needed. Just clear skies, dark horizons, and a willingness to stay up past midnight. Nature is still running the best free show on Earth — catch it while the cycle allows.