On May 11th, according to the National Space Weather Monitoring and Early Warning Center, influenced by a coronal mass ejection event, a severe geomagnetic storm (kp=9) erupted from late on the 10th to the early hours of the 11th.
Thanks to the combined effects of the Earth's magnetic field and atmosphere, a spectacular aurora display unfolded as scheduled, with dazzling auroras appearing in Mohe, Heilongjiang, and some areas of Xinjiang.
In the early hours of May 11th, photographer "Jeff's Starry Journey" shared on Weibo the massive aurora he captured in Altay, the strongest aurora in the area in 20 years.
He described how the entire northern sky was red, with various aurora columns clearly visible and constantly changing to the naked eye.
In addition to the red hues, rare green and purple auroras also made an appearance, leaving him excitedly exclaiming, "The scene was truly surreal!"
It is reported that auroras are colorful luminous phenomena appearing in the high magnetic latitude regions of a planet, caused by the interaction of the Earth's magnetic field or high-energy charged particle streams from the sun (solar wind) exciting molecules or atoms in the upper atmosphere.
The occurrence of auroras is closely tied to solar activity. During periods of high solar activity, more spectacular auroral displays can be seen than in normal years. In many regions with lower latitudes where auroras are not usually visible, people may also have the chance to witness these phenomena.
It is worth noting that the National Space Weather Monitoring and Early Warning Center issued a red alert for geomagnetic storms at 9 o'clock today. It is expected that the geomagnetic storm process will continue in the next 24 hours, and there may still be major geomagnetic storms in the future. This means there is still a chance to see widespread auroral displays tonight.
