Solar Eruption Sparks Aurora Alert and Geomagnetic Storm Warning.

A pair of eruptions on the sun on May 9 could lead to a display of the northern lights for parts of the northern and central United States tonight. The associated subatomic material appears to be headed directly toward Earth and, as a result, the Space Weather Prediction Center at the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has issued a geomagnetic storm watch for a possible G3 event today. Such a geomagnetic storm might allow auroras to be visible as far south as the border of Oregon and northern California, Denver, Colorado and the Outer Banks of North Carolina.