Night Sky Platform

Aurora Forecast — Data Architecture

What causes the aurora and the Kp index are shown as reference. Location-aware aurora forecasts are prepared for NOAA SWPC space-weather data.

Night SkyPrepared for live data

What causes the aurora

Aurorae occur when charged particles from the Sun — carried by the solar wind and coronal mass ejections — are funnelled by Earth's magnetic field into the upper atmosphere, exciting oxygen and nitrogen to glow.

The Kp index

Kp 0: Very quiet; aurora confined to high polar latitudes.
Kp 3: Unsettled; aurora possible at high latitudes.
Kp 5: Minor geomagnetic storm (G1); aurora may reach mid-high latitudes.
Kp 7: Strong storm (G3); aurora may be seen at mid-latitudes.
Kp 9: Extreme storm (G5); aurora possible far from the poles.

The Sun

Earth

Sources & references

Facts on this topic will be cited from these primary and reference sources.

NOAA SWPCNOAA Space Weather Prediction Center
Space-weather forecasts and alerts: aurora (OVATION), the Kp index, and the G1–G5 geomagnetic storm scale.

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Aurora Forecast — Data Architecture

What causes the aurora

The Kp index

Related in the Knowledge Graph

Sources & references

Aurora Forecast — Data Architecture

What causes the aurora

The Kp index

Related in the Knowledge Graph

Sources & references