Northern lights viewers in Fairbanks, Alaska capture dazzling footage: Watch
It has been a stunning few weeks of events in the sky. Before a rare "blood moon" lunar eclipse amazed Americans on Thursday, the aurora borealis glowed bright green last weekend, dazzling viewers in Alaska, according to observers who captured the event on camera.
Fairbanks spectators were treated to a vision of green on Sunday, one of the most common colors to appear in the aurora borealis, otherwise known as the northern lights.
This weekend, a few northern states could get another chance to see the northern lights and their fitting green colors ahead of St. Patrick's Day celebrations. The aurora viewline forecast by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) shows that northern states including Maine, Michigan, Wisconsin, Montana and Alaska could get some dazzling sights Friday and Saturday Night.
As for last weekend's display, here is what those lucky viewers in Alaska saw.
Video shows spectators stunned by glowing aurora borealis
A video taken by spectators in Fairbanks, Alaska offers a glimpse into the awe-inspiring light show. In it, a handful of people with cameras and tripods stand in an open field as greenish-blue light streaks across the sky. It appears to glitter and grow in a ring formation.
The video also shows a view from the road, as the lights can be seen through the front windshield of a moving car.
What causes the northern lights?
According to the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute, the northern lights are caused by collisions between electrically charged particles that enter Earth's atmosphere from space and collide with molecules and atoms of gas, like oxygen and nitrogen. As a result, the molecules gain energy. To return to their normal state, the molecules release energy in the form of light.
As for the colors of the northern lights, those are determined by Earth's atmosphere and the altitude of the molecular collisions, according to the institute. Typically, the northern lights appear as a "striking green," but reds, pinks, blues, purples, yellows and oranges can also be visible.
Seeing northern lights outside of the Earth's poles has become more common recently. Due to the sun's place in its 11-year solar cycle, extra solar activity is creating the right conditions for the northern lights to flourish.
Contributing: Eric Lagatta, USA TODAY
Kinsey Crowley is a trending news reporter at USA TODAY. Reach her at kcrowley@gannett.com. Follow her on X and TikTok @kinseycrowley or Bluesky at @kinseycrowley.bsky.social.