Look for the northern lights near Tri-Cities. Rare severe geomagnetic storm watch issued

The northern lights could glow on the Tri-Cities horizon Friday night and possibly through the weekend.

The Space Weather Prediction Center of the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration has issued a rare Severe (G4) Geomagnetic Storm Watch for Friday evening or night. It is the first G4 watch it has issued since 2005.

“Watches at this level are very rare,” NOAA, a division of the National Weather Service, posted online Thursday.

There is a chance that the aurora borealis could be seen visible over the northern half of the United States and possibly as far south as Northern California, according to NOAA.

Already a large sunspot cluster has produced several moderate to strong solar flares associated with coronal mass ejections since early Wednesday morning, it said.

There was one report on a private Facebook page for Washington state aurora chasers of the aurora being seen just before midnight Thursday night.

“How will anyone sleep for the next 48 hours?” posted another person in the group early Friday morning.

There is a possibility that some northern lights could be seen through the weekend, according to NOAA.

Coronal mass ejections are explosions of plasma and magnetic fields from the sun’s corona. When they arrive at Earth, a geomagnetic storm can result.

The current coronal mass ejections are forecast by NOAA to merge and arrive at Earth late Friday or early Saturday morning, NOAA posted.

Not only do the geomagnetic storms trigger spectacular displays of aurora on Earth, but they can potentially disrupt communications, the electric power grid, navigation, radio and satellite operations, according to NOAA.

Where to watch by Tri-Cities

To increase your chance of seeing the northern lights in the Tri-Cities area you will need to find a dark spot away from light pollution, preferably at one of the higher elevations in the area.

During past solar storms there have been some reports of people seeing the northern lights at Jump Off Joe Butte just south of the Tri-Cities. Take Owens Road to reach the butte.

In 2021 the aurora borealis was faintly seen in the Tri-Cities from Richland’s Top of the World park behind Yokes Fresh Market in south Richland.

But Tri-Cities photographers known for getting some of the best photos of the northern lights stake out dark spots out in north Franklin County along Highway 260 and its nearby rural roads.

On some occasions in the past in the Tri-Cities area the northern lights appeared as a gray to pale green haze or cloudiness along the horizon. But time exposure photographs caught the event in brilliant color with bright greens and even a few streaks of pink and purple.

Tri-Cities area residents posting on social media also have suggested finding dark spots north or east of the Hanford nuclear site, going to Lyons Ferry State Park or driving toward Dayton, Wash., on Highway 124 or Highway 12.

People looking for the lights are reminded to remain on public roads and shoulders rather than trespassing into fields that have been freshly planted.

To find higher elevation places near the Tri-Cities, a topographic map of the greater Tri-Cities area is posted at bit.ly/Tri-CityElevations.