Major U.S. metropolitan areas including those of Milwaukee, Minneapolis and Seattle are north of the projected viewline, while other cities including Buffalo and Detroit are just south of the predicted cutoff for seeing the lights. The northern lights may be visible in almost all of Canada, including Calgary, Montreal and Toronto.

Skywatchers are anticipating a possible aurora borealis for parts of the US on Dec. 25 following a solar flare that spewed a coronal mass ejection (CME) toward Earth. The CME prompted a geomagnetic storm warning from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Space Weather Prediction Center on Monday.

Areas included within Thursday’s viewing line include the northern tip of Idaho, northern Montana, North Dakota, northern Michigan and northern Wisconsin. For viewers in Alaska, chances of seeing the northern lights increase from west to east.

A display of auroras is expected to light up the skies on Christmas Day, thanks to a powerful M8.9 solar flare enroute to Earth.

A favorable aurora borealis forecast from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicts some of the northern-most U.S. states will have a shot at seeing the northern lights this Christmas Eve and Christmas day.

Keep looking up! As you wind down your Christmas day, make sure to carve out some time in the evening to head outside after dark and look up. A 1-2 punch of sky potential could delight the region (if we can actually clear that sky out in time).

On Christmas Day, a geomagnetic storm will enhance the chances of witnessing the Northern Lights across 10 U.S. states.