Get ready to see even more spectacular Aurora Borealis light shows in the Northwest Territories. That’s thanks to the Solar Maximum event now affecting the Earth’s upper atmosphere.
The NWT usually experiences Aurora, also known as Northern Lights, up to 240 nights a year. The territory can now expect to witness even more frequent and intense Northern Lights due to the current Solar Maximum, which is likely to continue into 2026.
Astronomers suggest this solar maximum may be even more intense than previous events, which take place roughly every 11 years when the Sun’s magnetic pole flips.
These flips produce more solar activity, such as sunspots and solar flares, which shoot super-charged energy particles out from the Sun. These collide with oxygen and nitrogen in the Earth’s upper atmosphere and produce those distinctive and incredibly bright rainbow-coloured Northern Lights.