Eruption Blows Hole in Sun's Atmosphere, Unleashing Solar Flare and Potentially Triggering Northern Lights

The Northern Lights May Shimmer Across the Sky Tonight—Here’s Where to Look

The upper parts of the northern U.S. have the best chance of spotting auroras.Credit: momo11353 / Getty ImagesAttention, skywatchers! Auroras might pop up in your area tonight, especially if you're located in the northern U.S.Thanks to the possible arrival of a glancing coronal mass ejection (CME)—an expulsion of plasma and magnetic fields from the sun—the northern lights could appear across the skies tonight, May 12.Geomagnetic conditions are e…

Eruption blows hole in sun's atmosphere, unleashing solar flare and potentially triggering northern lights

The sun has erupted with a moderate M5.7 solar flare and a coronal mass ejection that could trigger a northern lights display.

Powerful ejection blows massive hole in Sun's atmosphere, Earth on alert for impact

A powerful M5.7 solar flare from sunspot AR4436 tore a huge cavity in the Sun's atmosphere and launched a CME. Scientists say the blast is likely to miss Earth, but the active region is being watched closely as it turns more directly towards the planet.

Sun Erupts with Powerful Solar Flare, Sending Plasma Toward Earth

The Sun unleashed an M5.7-class Solar Flare on May 10, 2026, disrupting high-frequency radio communications and launching a coronal mass ejection toward Earth. Scientists predict the incoming plasma could trigger a minor geomagnetic storm and brighten auroras across northern regions. The event highlights the Sun’s increasing activity as it approaches the peak of its 11-year solar cycle this year.

Solar Flare Northern Lights Could Be Visible Tonight And Here Is Where To Look And What Time

The sun fired a powerful M5.7 solar flare on Saturday May 10, 2026, launching a fast-moving coronal mass ejection, a massive cloud of charged particles, into space at approximately 650 kilometers per second. Most of that cloud is heading east of Earth and will miss our planet entirely. But forecasters at NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center and the UK Met Office have identified a glancing blow scenario. The outer edge of the expanding cloud is…