Above the clouds and facing north, the aurora borealis was visible Friday night along Highway 2 in Angeles National Forest. The northern lights dazzled across California skies late Friday night — even as far south as Los Angeles County. The dazzling phenomenon, also known as the northern lights, is caused by supercharged collisions of solar energy into the gas of Earth’s atomosphere. A geomagnetic storm happens when energy from solar wind is transferred into the electromagnetic field around Earth. Most of these atomic particles are usually deflected, except for those in the polar areas, which create the northern lights.

Source: Los Angeles Times May 12, 2024 05:40 UTC