Aurora Borealis May Make Another Appearance: Call for Photos

An artist who goes by the name of Sinister Rose caught this image of the northern lights over the Mackinac Bridge. (Photo via Facebook)

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Parts of the Michigan sky turned green Tuesday night, but it had nothing to do with St. Patrick’s Day.

A solar storm pushed the northern lights farther south Tuesday, giving northern Michiganders a fantastic light show.

The solar storm was much stronger than forecasters with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicted – a Level 4 on the 1-to-5 geomagnetic scale, instead of the expected Level 1 – but it didn’t appear to cause any damage to GPS tracking systems or power grids.

What did happen was an unexpected surprise that sent professional and amatuer photographers in search of dark skies to capture the Aurora Borealis, usually visible only in far north regions.

Call for Photos:

• Did you see or snap any photos of the northern lights? We’d love to share them on Patch. Just email them to beth.dalbey@patch.com. We’ll credit you, of course.

Photojournalist Nastasia Peteuil, who is originally from France but moved to Detroit three years ago after attending the University of Michigan, told The Detroit News she had never seen the northern lights before she captured them with her camera lens Tuesday night and Wednesday morning.

“I was excited waiting to finally see them,” said Peteuil, 26. “I was in Frankfort, near Lake Michigan, when I heard it would be a good night. We tried to find someplace dark where I could shoot them.”

Photojournalist Nastasia Peteuil shot this photo from the Point Betsie Lighthouse in Frankfort. See more on her Facebook page.

You may get another chance to see the auroras tonight as far south as the Mid-Atlantic, Ohio Valley and Central Plains states. Clear skies are best for viewing; the metro Detroit forecast calls for partly cloudy skies tonight.