Vibrant hues that glitter and flow in the night sky are generated by charged particles from the sun entering Earth’s atmosphere. These colours include green, blue, violet, red, pink and yellow. Even though the odds of witnessing these lights rise significantly as you travel farther north, you don’t have to travel to the Arctic to mark this off your bucket list. You may view them at several places around the United States.
Here are 4 places to witness the northern lights in the US
1. Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument, Maine
Maine, the country’s most northern and eastern state, offers good possibilities of witnessing the Northern Lights, because of its dense forest cover and low levels of light pollution. According to the Natural Resources Council of Maine, stargazing events are held throughout Maine to celebrate the “Northern Lights enthusiast’s paradise,” which includes the impressive Mount Katahdin in Baxter State Park, the tallest mountain in the state, and the Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument, which has been described as an International Dark Sky Sanctuary.
2. Fairbanks, Alaska
Here, the Northern Lights season is long-lasting, spanning from August 21 to April 21. A handy tracker indicates the optimum times to see the lights. The Chena Lake Recreation Area, which is located just outside of the North Pole, Creamer’s Field Migratory Waterfowl Refuge and Cleary Summit are a few locations that are well-known for breathtaking views.
3. Idaho Panhandle National Forest, Idaho
Idaho is certainly not the first place that springs to mind when thinking of the northern lights, which is one of the reasons why each viewing above Priest Lake and the Idaho Panhandle National Forest is so spectacular. These locations—roughly 150 kilometers northeast of Spokane, Washington and 80 kilometers south of the Canadian border—offer the dark, clear skies that are perfect for seeing the northern lights in the winter.
4. Cook County, Minnesota
Cook County, located near the northeastern corner of Minnesota along the shores of Lake Superior, approximately 400 kilometers northeast of Minneapolis, has lots of outdoor spots where you can sit back and enjoy the lights. This location also has Minnesota’s tallest mountain peaks and highest waterfall, High Falls, which all provide a spectacular background for the multicolored sky.
