Here's an excuse to stay outside tonight that doesn't (necessarily) involve any drunken shenanigans: according to Accuweather, we may be able to see a display of the northern lights over the city Saturday! They write: "The [solar] flare is also expected to cause vibrant northern lights from the Arctic as far south as New York, the Dakotas, Washington and Michigan, with a smaller possibility of it going into Pennsylvania and Iowa, even Kansas."
Of course, there are some caveats: the lights are currently estimated for an 8 p.m. EDT arrival, with a possible deviation of up to seven hours. But if the radiation hits long after dark settles on the East Coast, the lights may be missed and will instead only be visible for the west. So we should all hope that it gets a little less overcast later today if we want any hope of seeing the beautiful weather phenomenon (and not just have to longingly gaze at photos of it from other parts of the country).
This wouldn't be the first time the aurora borealis has stopped by the five boroughs: the 1859 "Carrington Event," was seen world-wide, and there were also displays in 1877, 1941, and 1946 (that last time in Williamsburg!). Even if it doesn't happen this side, on the plus side,at least we won't have to worry about Mother Nature frying our power grids or anything.
