G3 Storm Watch in 22 States, Power Grid Warnings Issued

A geomagnetic storm watch is in effect tonight and tomorrow night, and space weather forecasters are warning about possible strain on the power grid, satellite trouble, and high-frequency radio outages. The upside: the northern lights could be visible across as many as 22 U.S. states on Saturday night and again Sunday night.

Watch the full breakdown on YouTube, and track the storm live on ReadyAtlas.

What's happening

This storm traces back to a powerful M6.4-class solar flare that erupted from the sun a few days ago. Forecasters are now expecting G3 (strong) geomagnetic storm conditions tonight and tomorrow night, along with R2 (moderate) radio blackout conditions.

The geoelectric field map is already lighting up. Areas around Minnesota, Wisconsin, Virginia, North Carolina, New York, Connecticut, and Massachusetts are showing elevated intensity, along with Alaska. As of this evening, conditions had already reached Kp 5 and G1 levels, with G3 still expected as the night goes on.

The 22 states where aurora may be visible

Under the current forecast, the northern lights may be visible tonight and tomorrow night in these states:

• Alaska, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming
• North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota, Colorado
• Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio
• Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine

The view line could stretch as far south as Colorado and Nebraska. Seeing aurora this far south used to be rare, but it has been happening more and more often. Last year, aurora was even spotted in Arizona and the Southwest.

Best viewing window: roughly 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. your local time, when the sky is darkest and the storm is most likely to peak near you. Get away from city lights and look north.

Power grid, satellite, and radio impacts

This isn't just a light show. Strong geomagnetic storms can affect the systems we depend on every day. The warnings for this storm include:

• Power grid: voltage corrections may be required, and false alarms may be triggered on some grid protection devices.
• Satellites and spacecraft: operations may be affected.
• Radio: outages of high-frequency (HF) radio are possible through the night.

Here's why. When a geomagnetic storm hits, it disturbs Earth's geoelectric field, and that energy can be induced into long power lines and the systems connected to them. That's why grid operators get these warnings ahead of time: so they can adjust or protect sensitive equipment, add switching capacity, and avoid overloads that could damage the grid.

Why this matters: the Carrington Event

The worst-case example is the Carrington Event of 1859. During that storm, telegraph lines absorbed so much energy from the atmosphere that equipment failed and wires sparked. Back then, the world barely ran on electricity.

Today, our electronics are far more sensitive and we're far more dependent on them. A Carrington-level storm could do serious damage to electrical systems, and the effects wouldn't be even. Some regions or countries could see their grids badly damaged while others come through fine, and that kind of imbalance could reshape things around the world.

Tonight's storm is not expected to be anywhere near that level. But it's a good reminder to stay prepared: keep flashlights, batteries, water, and food on hand, and have a way to get information if the power goes out.

Track the aurora and space weather live on ReadyAtlas

You can follow this storm in real time on ReadyAtlas. The space weather layer shows where the aurora is as darkness moves across the U.S., so you can catch it at the best time. It looks the same whether you're signed in on the website or on your phone.

ReadyAtlas puts real-time alerts on one live map:

• Space weather and geomagnetic storms
• Power grid emergency orders
• Earthquakes and volcanoes
• Wildfires and fire perimeters
• NWS weather alerts, forecasts, and radar
• Hurricane tracks and cones
• Tsunami warnings, advisories, and watches
• Air quality (AQI) and wildfire smoke

Set a watch area and get notified when something new happens near you.

👉 Get ReadyAtlas now

Also: Panama earthquakes keep coming

While the sun is active, the ground has been too. Yesterday's massive M7.7 earthquake near Panama has been followed by nonstop aftershocks, including an M6.6 and an M6.0 within roughly the past day.

This area matters to the whole world. The quakes are striking not far from the Panama Canal, a narrow passage that a huge share of global shipping relies on. If a large quake ever damaged the canal, it could disrupt global trade. You can watch the aftershock sequence unfold on the ReadyAtlas earthquake layer.

Stay ready

A strong solar storm, power grid warnings, and a string of major quakes near the Panama Canal, all in the same week. Stay safe, stay prepared, stay stocked up, and stay ready.

• 📺 Watch the video on YouTube
• 🗺️ Get ReadyAtlas
• 🌐 Visit ReadyAtlas.org

"Stand firm, and you will win life." (Luke 21:19)