Northern lights spotted across Minnesota on Sunday: Photos

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - A geometric storm that launched off the sun a few days ago led to the arrival of the aurora borealis overnight in Minnesota.

People reported seeing the northern lights as far south as Illinois, so they were likely visible throughout Minnesota on Sunday night. Here are some pictures viewers sent in of the northern lights.

What causes the northern lights?

Miss the northern lights Sunday night? Don't fret, you may have many more chances in the months ahead. That's because we are entering the peak of the 11-year sunspot cycle. Sunspots are temporarily relatively cooler areas, but very volatile sections on the sun. The exact cause of these spots isn't entirely clear, but we do know that the sun goes through cycles of how many spots are present at any given time.

Sunspots are the primary cause of the aurora borealis on Earth. These spots will occasionally erupt with plasma and supercharged particles that are hurled outward from the spot. If a spot erupts and it's pointed toward the Earth, then those charged particles will head our way. The knowledge of how all of this works is still relatively new so forecasting the aurora is still fairly imprecise, but forecasts are getting better every year. 

It may seem weird that it's the cooler spots that are actually the spots that send particles our way, but it's because these spots are more unstable leading to the ejection of a huge amount of particles. Because they are more unstable, they actually appear brighter if you look at them through a specially designed telescope. This shows up well when comparing where the current sunspots are located on a map of the sun.

Here are a couple of images that show the 11-year cycle for sunspots. The picture above shows the timing of the current cycle with the average peak not too far away, set for late this year. But the actual number of sunspots will vary from day to day and week to week as seen with the blue line, currently well above what was expected for this time period.

To extend the timing to show the last few cycles shows just how quiet sunspots have been for the last 25 years or so. There are many millennials and all of Gen Z that haven't experienced a truly active sun cycle because you have to go back to years near 1990 to find a busier sunspot cycle. The late 1970s and early 80s experienced an even busier sunspot cycle than the 1990 time frame. This is why the more seasoned adults may remember far more Northern Light appearances when they were younger. They were far more common for a couple of spurts in the 80s and early 90s, but have been relatively benign since then. That may change in the months ahead as we work into and through the peak cycle. Enjoy!

Tips for seeing the northern lights

Here are some quick facts to keep in mind when you attempt to see the Northern Lights:

• Always get as far away as possible from light pollution and large cities. While a strong CME would make it possible for the aurora to be visible in a city, this is seldom the case, especially the farther south your location is in the U.S.
• You will NOT see the aurora if there are clouds. Remember that the aurora lives dozens of miles above our weather, so any clouds will obstruct your view.
• Try to get an unobstructed view of the northern horizon. A strong CME could make the aurora appear more overhead. But it is far more likely that many of us will only be able to see them lower than 30 degrees above the northern horizon.
• The aurora is extremely variable and changes quickly over very short periods of time. Even some of the strongest CME's can have very short lifespans where the aurora are visible. You may sit and watch the horizon for hours only to get a sporadic 5-minute show of brilliant colors. In most cases, there is just no way to know for sure how the event will unfold for every location.
• Be extremely skeptical of any aurora forecast more than 48 hours away. When a CME is discharged from the sun, it will take roughly 36 to 60 hours to reach Earth. There is no way to predict when a CME will occur, so aurora forecasts are entirely reactionary and not predictive. If you see a story/post/comment expecting the northern lights to be visible more than two days away, I would not consider that credible information.
• In the Lower 48 states, the aurora will not look as good with your eyes as what many professional cameras can capture and the corresponding images that are then posted online. Cameras can be far more sensitive to the variation in light and color with long exposures compared to the human eye. Only when the aurora are high in the sky will they appear close to what is seen from a long exposure photograph.
• The strongest CME's can actually cause significant issues for humans. If they are strong enough, transformers at power stations can be overloaded, damaging the power grid, and creating large blackouts that would have the potential to last for weeks, depending on how badly damaged the power grid is. This type of event is VERY rare, so don't lose sleep over it. But it is possible and slightly more likely during peak sunspot years. The more likely scenario for stronger waves is that radios become inoperable thanks to static, and satellites temporarily lose the ability to communicate with transmitters here at the surface. So things like GPS, cell phones, and satellite TV would stop working for a relatively short period of time as the wave moves through.
• While the meteorologists at FOX 9 will try to keep you updated on more "legitimate" chances to see the northern lights, we are not experts on the subject. You can get a forecast from the experts at the Space Weather Prediction Center here or with an off-branch of NOAA at spaceweather.com