MYNORTHWEST NEWS

Aurora borealis streaks through night sky across Washington state

Oct 12, 2021, 6:50 AM | Updated: 10:22 am

Aurora borealis...

The aurora borealis in the sky above northern Spokane in early October 2021. (WSDOT East, Twitter)

(WSDOT East, Twitter)

The aurora borealis made a brief appearance in night skies across Washington state on Monday night, thanks to a solar flare that emanated off the sun over the weekend.

Aurora borealis makes appearance in Seattle night sky

The flare was said to have started its move toward Earth on Saturday, arriving sometime around Monday afternoon. While the negative impacts of such a flare on the planet were minimal, eagle-eyed viewers — particularly those with high-quality time-lapse cameras — may have seen an aurora borealis from the resulting solar storm everywhere from the Puget Sound region to Spokane.

The nighttime aerial light show kicked in around 8 p.m., making itself most visible to those furthest away from city centers. Sightings in Western Washington were reported near the U.S./Canada border just north of Lynden, Washington, moving as far south as Marysville.

In Eastern Washington, the aurora made an appearance near northern Spokane, with a green light streaking through the night sky around 11 p.m.

You can watch a time lapse of the experience courtesy of Skunk Bay Weather here.

MyNorthwest News

File photo of a brown bear. (Getty images)...

Tom Brock

Close call in Index: Bear attack leaves resident with minor wounds

An Index resident survived a bear attack outside their home Sunday morning and was only slightly hurt.

14 hours ago

A crash involving a motorhome and a Washington State Patrol vehicle injured the trooper and sent th...

Tom Brock

Washington State Patrol trooper injured after motorhome slams into cruiser on I-5 in Seattle

A three-vehicle crash on I-5 in Seattle put a Washington State Patrol (WSP) trooper in the hospital Sunday morning.

16 hours ago

shootout...

Tom Brock

North Seattle shootout leaves dozens of shell casings, hair-raising close call for woman in her apartment

People living in a north Seattle neighborhood survived a shootout Saturday morning, but their homes and cars were damaged in a flurry of gunfire.

2 days ago

Everett...

KIRO 7 News Staff

Everett proposes a $766 million budget with a potential new sales tax

Everett’s proposed budget for next year does not cut services or staff, but it could include a new sales tax to fund public safety.

2 days ago

Bellevue’s Cantina Monarca sets sights on Seattle waterfront debut in 2027...

Regan Gallo-Fenz

Bellevue’s Cantina Monarca sets sights on Seattle waterfront debut in 2027

From gourmet tacos to lobster enchiladas, Bellevue's Cantina Monarca is coming to Seattle.

2 days ago

Seahawks...

Luke Duecy

Seahawks vs. Chiefs: How the 12s can reclaim the world record for loudest stadium

Seattle Seahawks fans have a record to reclaim, and science offers a few clues about how to do it.

2 days ago

Aurora borealis streaks through night sky across Washington state