The Northern Lights

In January of 2001, Amy called our house in Idaho Falls at around midnight to tell us that the northern lights had filled the skies. In an apacoliptic display, the night sky was filled with reds, greens and whites. We all ran out of the house in our pajamas and gazed upwards. Then, some missing shoes and other essential articles of clothing, we jumped into the car to try to get out of the city lights for a better perspective. The scene faded as we drove down the highway. In a farmers field, we watched as the reds faded to greens, then to white. I travel up to Idaho quite often. I thought that it would be a good idea to check the sun's activity before I go, to see if there might be a higher potential to see the northern lights. NASA has a website that tracks it:

http://sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov/sunspots/