Alert issued as Northern Lights build in strength Tuesday

TOPEKA (KSNT) - National weather authorities say many people across the states could see the Northern Lights Tuesday night.

The National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC) issued a heightened alert for the Northern Lights, also known as the Aurora Borealis, on Sept. 17. This follows a strong showing of a storm in space thanks to an increase in solar activity.

The SWPC ranks these storms on a scale of G1 to G5 with G5 representing the most extreme case. The current alert places the ranking at a G4, meaning there is a major disturbance taking place in the earth's magnetic field. The storm's current strength means there could be voltage control issues, an increase in problems for satellite operations and longer periods of GPS degradation.

The Northern Lights appeared over Kansas earlier this year in a strong display in May when people from around the state captured photos of the aurora. Kansans were able to see more of the lights than usual as a storm in space achieved the G5 rank.

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