Northern Lights Forecast Over Canada Thursday Night
The Aurora Borealis may light up the sky as a volatile region of the Sun releases intense solar activity, setting the stage for vivid space weather in the coming nights.
Recent Solar Activity
Over recent weeks, solar astronomers and space weather fans have observed a remarkable series of eruptions from the Sun. These coronal mass ejections, or solar storms, either occurred on the Sun’s far side or were directed away from Earth. All originated from a single sunspot group, called Active Region 4274, which has recently rotated into view along the Sun’s eastern limb.
Visual Observations
In an image taken by the SUVI instrument on NOAA's GOES-19 weather satellite, multiple bright active regions are visible on the Sun as of November. A subtle darker area near the center marks a large coronal hole.
“The four inset images, captured by the NASA/ESA SOHO spacecraft's LASCO C3 coronagraph, reveal four large coronal mass ejections that are attributed to AR 4274.” (NOAA, NASA/ESA, Scott Sutherland)
Significant Solar Flare
On the morning of November 4, a powerful solar flare erupted from AR 4274. Classified as an X1.8-class flare, it is the strongest observed since the X1.9 flare on June 19, and currently ranks as the fifth strongest flare of 2025.
Author's summary: Active Region 4274 on the Sun has triggered intense solar flares and eruptions, increasing the chance to see spectacular northern lights over Canada this Thursday night.