Where the aurora is likely to be visible overhead in the next hour, on both hemispheres.
Aurora forms when solar wind is channeled along Earth's magnetic field lines into the upper atmosphere: oxygen emits green between 100 and 300 km altitude, and red at higher altitudes, while nitrogen contributes blue and violet. Because particles follow field lines rather than falling vertically, the display forms an oval around each magnetic pole (offset from the geographic poles), with both hemispheres lit simultaneously. The globe shows NOAA's OVATION model: probability of aurora overhead in the next 30–90 minutes, per the scale below. This lead time comes from measuring solar wind at L1, 1.5 million km upstream, roughly an hour before arrival. A narrow oval reflects quiet conditions; rising geomagnetic activity brightens it and pushes it equatorward.