'Really good show': Northern Lights could make a big return to the Foothills

If you missed the spectacular display of the Northern Lights earlier this month, there's a chance you could see them again really soon. 

A sunspot that unleashed a series of solar flares and the largest in nearly two decades back on May 10 and 11 has turned back toward Earth and let loose another powerful, but less intense, flare this week.

That means the northern lights could return to the skies over the Foothills on Friday night and into Saturday. 

The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which rates geomagnetic storms on a five-point scale, is forecasting a moderate G2 storm peaking Friday, compared to the severe G4 storm in early May.

While that may not bring as intense of a show as it was back then, Roland Dechesne with the Royal Astronomical Society Calgary Chapter said there is still a chance for a strong show.

"There are predictions with up to 40 per cent chance of an all-sky or an overhead display," he said.

As for how much of the northern lights will be visible in the Foothills, Dechesne couldn't offer a clear answer as predicting aurora borealis is incredibly difficult.

He said the biggest challenge is determining the polarity of the aurora, whether they move to the north or south pole.

"Currently, the flux heading towards us is south facing, which is good, that means it won't be bounced off by our earth's magnetic field and so we are anticipating that if that holds, we should have a really good show tonight,"

The forecast from the NOAA shows a low likelihood of spotting the northern lights along a path from Vancouver through to Winnipeg and Thunder Bay, Ont., with a higher likelihood in northern parts of the provinces and territories.

Still, Deschene believes the Foothills and other parts of southern Alberta will be able to see the aurora. As for what time is best to look to the skies, Deschene said that can also vary.

With that in mind, the best piece of advice if you want to see a glimmering, shimmering show, is to hop out of a town and plan to stay there as long as you can.

"Because you never know when little sub-storms are going to come along and really juice up the show," said Dechesne.

In an email, the NOAA said that since the days are getting longer, the window of opportunity to see the aurora diminishes, meaning that peak times to see the northern lights are anywhere from 11:30 p.m. to 2 a.m. or later.

You can find more details on the aurora forecast on the NOAA website.

-With files from The Canadian Press