UPDATE: CME Heads for Earth, Possible Aurora Borealis Monday Night for Oregon, Washington, Coast

Published 08/31/25 at 7:55 p.m. - Updated 09/01/25 at 7:55 p.m.
By Oregon Coast Beach Connection Staff

(Portland, Oregon) – UPDATE 9/1: Highest now predicted to be about 8 p.m. - and it's still somewhat light out. Also, some amount of haze in the skies above Portland, other inland areas. It won't hurt to look after 10 p.m. but chances are lesser.

Original Article Below

What a way to close out summer, right?

There is about a 40% chance (according to SolarHam) northern lights will make a bit of a showing in northern Oregon and perhaps along the coastline later on Monday night. NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC) said a sizable CME is headed this way and will start the colorful show sometime on Monday, especially for higher latitudes – including Washington and its northern coast. (Above: northern lights in Bandon. Courtesy Manuela Durson - Manuela Durson Fine Arts.)

“Aurora may be seen as low as Pennsylvania to Iowa to Oregon,” the SWPC said.

Luckily, for most of Oregon and the majority of the coast the weather will cooperate at night, with mostly clear conditions. However, the northern Oregon coast looks to be mostly cloudy, with things clearing from about Lincoln City southward all the way to the end of the border at Brookings.

This won't be a highly visible one – if it happens. You'll need camera gear to catch it, and even then you'll need a cellphone that's capable of astrophotography or a good SLR rig.

Washington Coast Weather - Oregon Coast Weather  - Inland Oregon Weather

Timing: the SWPC said it will peak at a G2 to G3 storm from about 8 p.m. to 2 a.m., with the G3 (highest intensity) predicted somewhere around 11 p.m. to 2 a.m. UPDATE 9/1: Highest now predicted to be about 8 p.m. - and it's still somewhat light out. Also, some amount of haze in the skies above Portland, other inland areas.

Look to the north about then. It appears the best possibilities are from about Astoria, Long Beach into Portland and then it starts getting a little more southerly into the Columbia Gorge. Places like Portland, Vancouver and surrounding rural areas are looking at clear skies.

So what happened?

Steven Smith / Solution 7 Media

“A Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) erupted from the Sun on August 30 and may have impacted Earth at speeds over 2 million mph,” the SWPC said. “The CME is Earth-directed and is expected to arrive around September 1.”

There is a possibility it will wind up a G4 storm, which would make it more likely to be seen farther south. This could mean spacecraft and means of communication may get impacted.

“If the CME arrives, it will likely produce geomagnetic storm activity approximately 20–50 minutes before arrival,” the SWPC said. “The concern is that the CME could be stronger than expected and may cause disruptions and warnings.”

Keep an eye on the Oregon Coast Weather page which has aurora borealis updates.

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