Nature loves to put on a show. Nowhere does science and wonder coincide better than in the northern lights, aka the aurora borealis, which occasionally make an appearance over Washington. Usually we know it’s coming, like when the Space Weather Prediction Center from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration—say that five times fast—issues a geomagnetic storm watch.
What does that mean? Nature might be gearing up for its own brand of costume party with a burst of sky color. NOAA makes such predictions when, say, the sun spits out a big solar flare and Coronal Mass Ejection, which hits the earth and affects the atmosphere. Such storms
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