Northern Lights: When will we see the Aurora Borealis in Mississippi again?

Millions were wowed last week when the Northern Lights, or Aurora Borealis, made a rare appearance as far south as the Gulf Coast.

Photos circulated on social media and elsewhere of the pink and green night sky in an event that hasn't happened in decades.

But what causes such a spectacular sight, and when could it happen again?

"Northern Lights happen when explosions on the surface of the sun create strong solar winds that in turn reach the earth," said Chris Sirola, associate professor of astronomy and physics at the University of Southern Mississippi. "But we are not at a place where we can predict when these explosions will happen."

The study of the stars and planets and all the other things we see in the sky is an incredible thing. Scientists can predict certain events, such as the next total eclipse of the sun over Mississippi in 2045, with great reliability.

However, the Aurora Borealis is a different animal. There are a lot of factors that go into it and they must fit together like pieces of a puzzle.

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What causes the Aurora Borealis?

"The sun has two properties that contribute to aurorae — a strong magnetic field and differential rotation," Sirola said. "By differential rotation, we mean that the sun rotates at different rates at different solar latitudes."

Sirola explained that the earth's surface is solid, so we all rotate together, but the Sun is a fluid gas and doesn't need to. He said the Sun's equator rotates once about every 25 days whereas the rate is about 35 days near its poles.

This causes the sun's magnetic field to get tangled and that creates solar eruptions and every 11 years that activity peaks, as it's doing now. Those eruptions can send particles into earth's atmosphere and that collision creates bright colors.

According to Space.com, unusually large solar eruptions created an unusually large light show visible in areas, such as Mississippi, where it's rarely seen. According to the website, such an event hasn't been seen since 2003.

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When will the South see the Northern Lights again?

That's a question many may be asking.

Solar activity is near peak and will then begin to slow and start the process over again. So, in about 11 years it should reach peak activity again.

There's a catch, though. Not only will the sun need to produce a large eruption, which are unpredictable, it will need to be pointing toward earth.

So, when the Northern Lights will appear in the South again is anyone's guess.

"Most solar explosions go off into space away from us and never affect us in any way," Sirola said. "Solar astronomers can predict general trends, but not individual flares. The most they can do is observe a flare and see if it's headed our way."

Do you have a story idea? Contact Brian Broom at 601-961-7225 or [email protected].

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Northern Lights: When will we see them in MS again?