The northern lights returned to skies across the U.S. and the world over Thursday night after a powerful solar storm triggered stunning celestial displays also known as aurora borealis.
The big picture: Extreme G4 geomagnetic conditions were observed Thursday and remained overnight, per NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center, which warned the storm had the potential to disrupt communications and the electric power grid.
Stargazers across the Northeast were treated to a dazzling display of light Thursday evening, as a severe geomagnetic storm created a rare sighting of the aurora borealis.
Driving the news: According to the Space Weather Prediction Center, a coronal mass ejection (CME) erupted from the Sun on Oct. 8, sending charged particles hurtling towards Earth. The following day New York City's Emergency Management Department issued a warning about potential "impacts to critical infrastructure, including GPS, power grids, and communications," but said the public did not need to take action.
With clear skies in the forecast across the region for Friday, the aurora could again be visible in skies tonight.
Hurricane Milton has resulted in at least eight deaths, as officials continued to survey damage from the storm on Thursday.
The big picture: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said the death toll from Wednesday night's hurricane was expected to rise in coming days, and the state was working to restore power and replenish fuel supply. Over 2.6 million people remained without electricity as of 8:45pm ET Thursday.
