Metro Vancouverites may be treated to a spellbinding celestial display the day before Valentine's Day...and bleeding into the wee hours of the Hallmark holiday.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Space Weather Prediction Center has issued a G1 (Minor) geomagnetic storm watch for Thursday, Feb. 13, noting "storm periods are likely."
The University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) expects the aurora borealis will be visible overhead in locations such as Inuvik, Juneau, Edmonton, and Winnipeg and visible low on the horizon as far south in the United States as Seattle, Des Moines, Chicago, Cleveland, and Boston (see slide two).
Metro Vancouverites may also be able to view the dancing lights low on the horizon.
Auroral activity is also expected to be "high," meaning there's a greater likelihood of seeing the heavenly manifestation during select periods.
The university's online aurora monitor map shows what regions the aurora's green glow will likely reach and other areas where it is less likely. Additionally, a brief description of the aurora activity is below the map. You can switch to different days to see the forecast, too.
Metro Vancouver weather forecast includes dry weather during a potential aurora viewing opportunity
The Metro Vancouver weather forecast includes several days of crystal-clear skies and frigid temperatures as a ridge of high pressure keeps Arctic air in the region through the end of the work week. However, some cloudy periods are expected starting Thursday.
V.I.A.'s Downtown Centre Weatherhood station shows a high of 4 C and a low of -1 C for Thursday with some cloudy periods at night.
People hoping to view the lights can use Environment Canada's online cloud prediction tool for astronomical purposes to see when skies are expected to be clear.
Stay up-to-date with hyperlocal forecasts across 50 neighbourhoods in the Lower Mainland with V.I.A.'s Weatherhood.
