Northern lights potential; snow chance for some on Wednesday

Cool high-pressure systems usually contain very little moisture. That's great for star gazers and for viewing the northern lights.

The northern lights can be spectacular at times, and a few people have even seen them from above:

Here's NASA's description of the image;

The spectacular aurora borealis, or the “northern lights,” over Canada is sighted from the International Space Station near the highest point of its orbital path. The station’s main solar arrays are seen in the left foreground. This photograph was taken by a member of the Expedition 53 crew aboard the station on Sept. 15, 2017.

According to the folks at the University of Alaska-Fairbanks Geophysical Institute, southern Canada is likely to see some impressive northern lights this Tuesday night:

Sky gazers as far south as Iowa could see the northern lights low on the horizon.

Minnesotans stand a good chance of seeing some northern lights too, especially away from city lights.

What causes the northern lights?

According to NASA:

The “northern lights” are caused by collisions

between fast-moving particles (electrons) from space

and the oxygen and nitrogen gas in our atmosphere.

These electrons originate in the magnetosphere, the

region of space controlled by Earth’s magnetic field.

As they rain into the atmosphere, the electrons impart

energy to oxygen and nitrogen molecules, making

them excited. When the molecules return to their

normal state, they release photons, small bursts of

energy in the form of light.

As explained by EarthSky, particles from our sun initiate the northern lights display that we see:

Our sun is 93 million miles away. But its effects extend far beyond its visible surface. Great storms on the sun send gusts of charged solar particles hurtling across space. If Earth is in the path of the particle stream, our planet’s magnetic field and atmosphere react.

When the charged particles from the sun strike atoms and molecules in Earth’s atmosphere, they excite those atoms, causing them to light up.

Snow chances

Some snow is expected to move into northern Minnesota by early Wednesday afternoon, then spread into central Minnesota by late afternoon.

Southern Minnesota and the Twin Cities metro area could see some snow showers Wednesday evening into Wednesday night. A little rain could mix with the snow showers at times.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's North American Mesoscale forecast model shows the potential precipitation pattern Wednesday afternoon and evening:

Blue areas in the simulated radar loop indicate snow; green areas are rain.

The color chart to the right of the loop refers to the strength of the signal that returns to the radar, not to the amount of rain.

It looks like northern Minnesota could see an inch or so of snow, with lesser amounts for central Minnesota and a dusting possible in the south.

Check later forecasts for possible updates.

Cool, then cold

Our average high temperature is 46 degrees this time of year in the Twin Cities metro area. We won't hit that mark anytime soon.

Northern Minnesota will top out in the 20s Wednesday, with highs mostly in the 30s central and south:

If that isn't cool enough for you, take a look at Thursday's highs:

That's right, highs in the teens for the north with 20s in southern Minnesota, including the Twin Cities metro area.

Looking ahead, Twin Cities highs are expected to reach the lower 40s this coming weekend, with a rain/snow mix possible on Saturday.

Looking way ahead, one forecast model is showing highs in the lower 50s in the Twin Cities metro area next Tuesday.

Just think how warm that would feel!