More northern lights? Solar activity continues increasing

The Sun has been very active lately. In fact, the Sun’s activity has been increasing and is expected to do so over the next few years.

If you were one of the lucky northern light viewers in the last couple of months, you know all about the uptick in our Sun’s activity.

The recent geomagnetic storms have been strong enough to send the aurora as far south as India. Since the end of 2020 and early 2021, the Sun’s activity has been higher than forecast for this solar cycle, number 25.

An average solar cycle lasts 11 years, with the increasing portion lasting around 5.5 years. Solar cycle 25 began in December 2019 and has been above the forecast activity for some time now, measured by the number of sunspots.

The more sunspot activity, the busier our Sun is. Based on the current forecast, solar activity is expected to reach a maximum between November 2024 and March 2026, which means a greater chance to see northern lights.

When the Sun emits a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME), they release huge amounts of energy, creating solar flares which cause geomagnetic storms here on Earth. This produces the aurora, but also the chance of disrupted radio transmission and power grids.

The continued above-average activity only gives us more chances to see the northern lights! Be sure to capture any images and send them in to our uploader to be featured!