Dear Tom,
How far south in the United States have the northern lights been seen?
Rich Pokorski, Morton Grove
Dear Rich,
The northern lights or aurora borealis have been seen in all of the 50 United States, though sightings become increasingly rare in the southern tier of the lower 48 states and in Hawaii. The dazzling aurora display that was seen in Chicago last month was visible in portions of at least 39 states including areas as far south as Texas, Alabama and Georgia. Following especially strong solar flares, the northern lights have even been sighted as far south as northern Mexico. Auroras are, of course, most common in northern latitudes and are seen more than 100 nights each year in Canada and Alaska. The frequency of sightings drops off sharply further south, and in Chicago the aurora is visible on the average of only about once every two years.
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Tom Skilling is chief meteorologist at WGN-TV. His forecasts can be seen Monday through Friday on WGN-TV News at noon and 9 p.m.
Write to: ASK TOM WHY, 2501 Bradley Pl., Chicago, IL 60618 or asktomwhy@wgntv.com (Mail volume precludes personal response.)
WGN-TV meteorologists Steve Kahn, Richard Koeneman and Paul Dailey plus weather producer Bill Snyder contribute to this page.
