The Sun threw ten flares in 24 hours, and the aurora could reach unusually far south this weekend

The Sun has been busy. Ten flares in 24 hours marked a sharp spike in solar activity this week, and the knock-on effect is a raised chance of aurora across northern latitudes over the July 4 weekend. When the Sun is this active, the charged particles it flings out can light up skies well south of where the northern lights usually bother to appear.

The practical advice is simple. Get away from city light, give your eyes 20 minutes to adjust, and look north between roughly 10pm and 2am local time. A phone camera on a long exposure will often catch colour your eyes cannot. Timing shifts by the hour, so check a live aurora forecast the evening you plan to go out.

Space weather owes you nothing and the clouds may not cooperate. But the ingredients are lined up better than usual, and it costs nothing to step outside and check.