Boulder County residents bombard social media with aurora borealis images

Dana Cadey, Daily Times-Call, Longmont, Colo.
·2 min read
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May 11—Sean Bowling, a University of Colorado Boulder sophomore, said that when his friend told him they would be able to see the Northern Lights just by stepping outside, Bowling thought he was joking.

"I honestly didn't believe him," Bowling said. "I didn't even know it was happening."

Bowling and his friend ended up driving from Boulder to Allenspark on Friday to view the aurora borealis. The effort was worth it — Bowling said the night was "pitch black," which provided a striking backdrop for the colorful lights playing across the sky.

"They were really nice up there," Bowling said of the lights. "There was no light pollution or anything. The only light was coming from the Northern Lights."

Bowling described the lights as multi-colored beams that illuminated the sky. Scientists say that geomagnetic storms and solar outbursts called coronal mass ejections cause the atmospheric delights.

"The colors were changing," Bowling said. "We spent a couple of hours up there. It was mostly green toward the beginning, and when we left, it was more red."

The natural phenomenon was visible throughout Boulder County on Friday night, and several residents took to social media to share their photos of the sky.

"I didn't actually think it was the Northern Lights until we went out there and saw it," Bowling said. "It was pretty cool."

Bowling also traveled to Wyoming to watch the 2017 solar eclipse. Being able to see the aurora borealis from Colorado, though, was something he said he never expected to experience.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration issued a severe, G4 geomagnetic storm watch on Thursday — the second highest on the scale — for the first time since since January 2005.

It will be up to the fickle Colorado weather if skies are clear enough to see the lights again Sunday night. Scattered rain showers and thunderstorms, as well as cloudy overlays, could block the aurora borealis from view, according to National Weather Service forecasters. Those looking to see the next wave of lights might have more luck up by the Colorado-Wyoming border.

— with additional reporting from the Denver Post.