Oklahomans Could Get Glimpse Of Northern Lights

People across Oklahoma could be treated to a rare and amazing sight Monday night and into early Tuesday morning.

The northern lights, also known as the aurora borealis, could be visible as far south as Oklahoma City during the overnight hours.

The chance of seeing them Tuesday night and into Wednesday morning is almost as good. The chance drops off significantly by Wednesday night.

If they're visible in Oklahoma, and it may be a big if, they'd show up very low on the northern horizon.

According to NASA, auroras form when the sun sends a “solar wind” of charged particles into Earth's magnetic field, accelerating electrically charged particles trapped within.

The high-speed particles then crash into Earth's upper atmosphere over the Polar Regions, causing the atmosphere to emit a multicolored glow.

Because of a giant coronal mass ejection on the sun this week, the northern lights will be much more active than usual, making them visible much further south than usual. 

For more information on the possible visibility of the northern lights, you can keep updated here or here.