The sun has launched a blob of plasma toward Earth that could trigger a geomagnetic storm in the planet's magnetic field, officials say. This could bring stunning aurora displays to parts of the United States, primarily northern and upper Midwest states today (Jan. 22 and Tuesday (Jan. 23), according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Space Weather Prediction Center.
Solar flares — intense bursts of electromagnetic radiation generated in the sun's atmosphere — can launch magnetized plasma bubbles into space, which are known as coronal mass ejections (CME). These highly energetic clouds expand outward and can slam into Earth's magnetosphere — the magnetic field that envelops our planet and protects the surface from the most severe impacts of space weather. This collision can cause a geomagnetic storm, which can produce incandescent auroral displays as the CME's energized particles ionize oxygen and nitrogen molecules in the atmosphere.
