Rare Aurora Flare Puts on Stunning Show in The Hudson Valley

On Friday night, May 11th, 2024, social media was abuzz across the Hudson Valley and the nation due to a rare sighting in the sky.

An aurora borealis was visible across the Hudson Valley and the tri-state area. Did you see it?

Extreme Geomagnetic Storm Seen Across The Hudson Valley

When I think Northern Lights or the Aurora Borealis, I usually think of Alaska and Iceland. I never thought I could catch a glimpse in my backyard.

CBS News reports that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicted an "extreme" G5 geomagnetic storm to reach Earth on Friday, May 11th, 2024. According to the report, this is a rare occurrence, the last time a storm like this took place was in October 2003.

The 2003 geomagnetic storm was so strong in Sweden and South Africa it caused power outages and damaged transformers.

Did you experience any time of power outages in the Hudson Valley during the aurora in the Hudson Valley? We haven't heard any reports of power outages, but we'll keep an eye on it.

What is an Aurora Borealis?

The solar storm was visible mostly by camera across New York State, but I did notice the sky a unique shade of purple like storm cloud purple however, I could see the stars.

Many photos were shared across all social media platforms over the weekend, but what were we actually taking pictures of? What is an aurora borealis?

While you can see them best at night, auroras are caused by the sun. NASA explains

The Sun sends us more than heat and light; it sends lots of other energy and small particles our way. The protective magnetic field around Earth shields us from most of the energy and particles, and we don't even notice them.

They go on and add "When a solar storm comes toward us, some of the energy and small particles can travel down the magnetic field lines at the north and south poles into Earth's atmosphere."

The solar storms produce gorgeous colors. The US National Weather Service Mobile Alabama shared this helpful graphic to help us decipher what the colors we see mean:

Share Your Hudson Valley Aurora Photos!

I think we can all agree, this was WAY cooler than the solar eclipse, right?

Were you able to see the extreme G5 geomagnetic storm? Did you catch it on camera? We would love to add your photos to our gallery below. Send your pictures to Jess@Hudsonvalleycountry.com, tell us your location and first name and we'll make sure to add the photos to our gallery.

In the meantime, check out some of the great shots of the rare aurora borealis captured across the Hudson Valley:

Personally, I think the aurora was much more enjoyable than the solar eclipse. Here, you be the judge:

Looking for some outdoor adventure? Check out the Rail Explorers the Catskills: