TORONTO — Good news: there’s a chance you could see the northern lights this weekend.
As we reported earlier this week, scientists were waiting to see if a solar flare would result in a chance to see the northern lights, or aurora borealis. Well, there’s good and bad news.
READ MORE: WATCH – 5 of the best northern lights videos you will ever see
Two coronal mass ejections (CME) that sent out particles from the sun are expected to reach Earth on Friday. However, the one associated with the strong solar flare that erupted on Wednesday, will likely only give us a glancing blow on March 14.
But calculating the exact time the particles will arrive and interact with our magnetosphere (which gives us the northern lights) is tricky business. Sometimes scientists are off in the calculations, so there is the chance that it could occur earlier or later in the day.
Now, sometimes it’s hard to see them with the naked eye. You could always set up your camera on a tripod and take a ten- to 15-second exposure at a high ISO to capture some great, faint aurorae.
If you have clear skies and are in a relatively dark area, look north and you might be in for a treat.
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