Northern Lights Dazzle Onlookers Across Canada

Photo: Lori Rowe in Carbonear, NL.

A powerful geomagnetic storm is slamming Earth resulting in intense northern lights displays across Canada and portions of the United States last night.

A geomagnetic storm is a disturbance of the Earth's magnetosphere caused by solar winds.

While the displays may be beautiful, it is actually a rather violent event.

The northern lights, or aurora borealis, are created when sun particles slam into Earth's atmosphere at speeds of up to 72 million km/h, luckily our planet's magnetic field protects us.

PHOTO: Abby Brookings, Carbonear NL.

PHOTO: Paula Atkinson Cunningham, Boutiliers Point , NS.