Northern lights paint skies across Nova Scotia

The northern lights put on a show across Nova Scotia Thursday evening, as vibrant reds, greens and purples danced across the night sky.

Dartmouth resident Shauna Selig decided to drive to Martinique Beach, N.S., for her shot at seeing the lights abucket-list item she never thought she'd be able to cross off at home.

As she stood on the province's longest sandy beach, nestled on the picturesque Eastern Shore, she said one word came to mind "spectacular."

"My friend told me to turn around at one point as it was really lighting up and I was in awe," said the 47-year-old woman.

"You see photos from all over the world but seeing them yourself is a totally different experience."

WATCH |What causes vibrant reds, greens and purples to dance across the sky?

What causes vibrant reds, greens and purples to dance across the sky?

2 days ago

Duration 2:17

The northern lights put on a show across the province on Thursday overnight into Friday. CBC meteorologist Ryan Snoddon explains how the auroras form.

The U.S.-based NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center was forecasting a KP index between 7.3 and 8.3 Thursday evening into Friday morning, according to CBC meteorologist Ryan Snoddon.

The KP index ranges from zero to nine and describes the disturbance of the Earth's magnetic field caused by the solar wind. Simply put: the faster the wind blows, the greater the turbulence and the greater the chance for the aurora borealis to be viewable, he said.

If you missed Thursday's event, there's a small chance for Round 2 on Friday evening.

According to the spaceweather prediction organization, with the latest solar storm now easing, the solar activity won't be as strong or as visible in our skies on Friday night, said Snoddon.

That said, the organization is forecasting an index in the mid-range Friday evening and overnight, which means there is still a low chance the auroras may be visible here, he said.

If viewable, the lights would be most likely to appear lower in the northern sky near the horizon, said Snoddon.

He said the weather forecast looks favourable, with mostly clear to partly cloudy skies across most of the mainland, with more dominant clouds across the Northumberland Shore and Cape Breton.

While many of the photos on social media feeds are indeed dazzling, it's important to note that the northern lights appear more clearly on smartphones than they do to the naked eye.

Experts have said that's because your phone is collecting light for a longer period of time than your eyes do.