Using night mode on your phone can help capture photos of the northern lights. Here's how to turn it on. - CBS Pittsburgh

By Mike Darnay

Updated on: October 12, 2024 / 1:34 PM EDT / CBS Pittsburgh

PITTSBURGH, Pa. (KDKA) -- The northern lights are expected to be visible again throughout parts of the United States on Friday night.

When the northern lights, or the aurora borealis, are visible, the best way to see them is to find a dark spot away from bright lights, allow time to enable your eyes adjust to the darkness and look toward the north.

The northern lights show up best in photos.

Here's how to use night mode on your phone's camera to try to capture photos of the colorful auroras.

If you are using an iPhone, Apple says the default settings will have night mode turn on automatically "when the camera detects a low-light environment."

When night mode is active, an icon will turn yellow in the top left corner of your screen.

A number will show up next to that icon showing you how long it will take for the photo to take.

You can adjust how long the exposure will last by tapping the arrow that shows up above the viewfinder.

Starting night mode on an Android device will depend on the type of device you have.

On a Samsung Galaxy device, a yellow moon icon will pop up in the bottom right of your screen. On a Pixel device, you can tap Night Light, then tap Capture and hold your phone still for a few seconds. In the Google Camera app, you can turn Night mode on by tapping settings and turning the mode on or off.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Space Weather Prediction Center has issued its "Aurora Forecast" for Friday with numerous parts of the United States in the range of potentially being able to see the bright auroras of the northern lights.

The map of the aurora forecast shows that northern parts of the country have a better chance of seeing the auroras.

A view line that shows "the southern extent of where aurora might be seen on the northern horizon" stretches from Washington, D.C. across the Midwest and through Illinois, Pennsylvania and New York.

The northern lights were visible all throughout the country on Thursday night.

Photos of the northern lights were captured in places like Pittsburgh, Detroit, Chicago, Boston, New York, Baltimore, and Philadelphia.

The colorful auroras had green, purple, red and pink hues scattered throughout the skies.

When a geomagnetic storm occurs, solar wind is sent toward Earth.

Charged protons and electrons follow Earth's magnetic field and enter the atmosphere where the magnetic fields are the weakest: the poles.

The electrons smash into all the different molecules that make up our atmosphere, creating a dazzling display of colors in the sky.

Mike Darnay is a digital producer and photojournalist at CBS Pittsburgh. Mike has also written and produced content for Vox Media and the Mon Valley Independent. He often covers overnight breaking news, the Pittsburgh Steelers and high school sports.

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