Geomagnetic storm brings rare glimpse of Northern Lights to Southern California

Some Southern Californians were treated to an extremely rare glimpse at the Northern Lights over the weekend as an intense geomagnetic storm hit the area. 

Otherwise known as the Aurora Borealis, the Northern Lights traditionally bring incredible displays of pink, green and red light to the night sky, which made an unusual appearance as far south as San Bernardino County because of the strong storm, the strongest to hit in the last 19 years. 

Related: Maps show where millions in U.S. could see northern lights this weekend

While the phenomenon was more visible to northern parts of the United States, some people who ventured to the deserts or mountainous regions were treated to a view of the unprecedented event. 

"It was amazing," said Brandy Carlos, a Cherry Valley resident who is known as @FirePhotoGirl on X. "I don't even know how to explain it. I've never seen it before, that was my first time and the fact that we even got to see it here in Southern California, I mean, it was incredible."

Carlos heard about the rarity and jumped into her car, driving as far north as she could on the 15 Freeway before reaching a remote area just outside of Barstow. 

The storm is expected to continue through Sunday, which means that there could be more of chances to get a look at the experience which is traditionally only visible in places like Alaska, Canada and northern Europe. 

"We have a fleet of CMEs coming in, as you know these coronal mass ejections of material from the sun," said Shawn Dahl with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which announced that the Aurora Borealis would be visible over the weekend. "We're not sure if they've all come through yet, and we're still on the waning edge as they pass by, so tonight we're not sure what to expect."

Solar storms traditionally begin as giant explosions on the surface of the sun, which in turn send streams of energized particles towards Earth. Once they hit the planet's magnetic field they turn into a storm.

The storm has the potential to disrupt communications, GPS, power and even satellites worldwide, but so far there have been no reports of major issues, which are being closely monitored by government officials.