September 2024 Auroras

On 14 September an X4.5-class solar flare hurled a coronal mass ejection towards Earth. An intense auroral display was triggered on 16 September, which extended as far south as Colorado.

The Sun is near solar maximum now, and we can expect strong activity for another year, perhaps more, so there remains a good chance of more low latitude auroras in the near future.

Looking north at 21:24. The high altitude red is produced by extremely rarified oxygen in the upper atmosphere, and is usually only seen during very energetic events- just the type required to extend an aurora as far south as Colorado. This aurora was very visible despite a full supermoon lighting up the sky. 15-second exposure, Canon 7D, ISO 2000, 14mm lens.

An animated sequence of 15-second frames spanning 16 minutes.