MELVILLE — A SaskToday reader captured a brilliant northern lights display over Melville on Nov. 12, as one of the most intense geomagnetic storms of the year lit up skies across Saskatchewan.
Richard Goebel shared several photos of the colourful auroras after vibrant bands of green, red and purple rippled across the region late Wednesday night.
According to Space Weather Canada, a severe G4 geomagnetic storm occurred Nov. 11 and 12, triggered by a series of coronal mass ejections (CMEs) from the sun. The storm produced widespread aurora sightings across Canada and deep into the United States.
Saskatchewan was directly in the storm’s “view line,” and a combination of mild temperatures and clear skies helped make the display especially vivid for many local observers.
Goebel said the lights were captured around 8:30 p.m.
Geomagnetic storms occur when charged particles from the sun interact with Earth’s magnetic field, creating colourful light displays near the poles. Stronger storms, such as this week’s G4 event, can push auroras much farther south than usual.
