Northern Lights Illuminate Skies Across United States

A severe geomagnetic storm brought vibrant, bright auroras as far south as Arizona, California, Oklahoma, Iowa, New Mexico and North Carolina. The auroras were particularly vivid at higher latitudes, where they could be seen with the naked eye, even near cities in some instances. Some also reported a newly discovered light phenomenon known as STEVE, short for Strong Thermal Emission Velocity Enhancement. The activity comes on the heels of a recent slew of beautiful aurora activity.