MINNEAPOLIS — What better way to ring in the holiday season than with a festival of northern lights?
KARE 11 viewers looked toward the sky Thursday night, as the aurora borealis danced across our slice of Earth, dazzling as far south as Alexandria and Hinckley. The absolute best views Thursday night, however, were recorded in the northern part of the state, where KARE 11 Meteorologist John Zeigler said an encore is expected Friday.
While the lights peaked Thursday night in Minnesota between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m., Zeigler said Friday's spectacle will be most visible between 5 and 8 p.m. and will shift further north.
Unfortunately, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Space Weather Prediction Center, Friday's probability of getting a good glimpse is still a bit lower than Thursday.
So you're telling me there's a chance.
This week's light show comes after several notable displays of the northern lights this year, the last of which wowed onlookers in September. KARE 11 Meteorologist Jamie Kagol explained the phenomenon as a consequence of activity relating to the sun.
"The Sun's solar activity will strengthen this year, so we can look forward to more sunspots, flares and coronal mass ejections which means we are likely to see even more Northern Lights displays going forward," he said.
Love the chase? NOAA said, as a general rule, the lights become more visible the further north you go, especially when heading away from urban light pollution.
Northern lights dance across Minnesota, Wisconsin
WATCH MORE ON KARE 11+
Download the free KARE 11+ app for Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV and other smart TV platforms to watch more from KARE 11 anytime! The KARE 11+ app includes live streams of all of KARE 11's newscasts. You'll also find on-demand replays of newscasts; the latest from KARE 11 Investigates, Breaking the News and the Land of 10,000 Stories; exclusive programs like Verify and HeartThreads; and Minnesota sports talk from our partners at Locked On Minnesota.
- Add KARE 11+ on Roku here or by searching for KARE 11 in the Roku Channel Store.
- Add KARE 11+ on Fire TV here or by searching for KARE 11 in the Amazon App Store.
- Learn more about the KARE 11+ app for Apple TV in the Apple App Store.
- Learn more about KARE 11+ here.
Watch more local news:
Watch the latest local news from the Twin Cities and across Minnesota in our YouTube playlist: