The solar wind projections have density decreasing and speed increasing over the next week. We just had a very nice wind stream pass Earth and it looks like another one is on the way. With lower densities, expect weak displays, overall, unless you are close to the auroral zone. Wind speeds being elevated still gives a decent chance of aurora activity if we continue to see southward Bz components pass through.
Clouds are on the rise in south-central Alaska tonight as we are on the northwest edge of a high pressure ridge. This is allowing our next storm system to pump vast amounts of moisture over the area. Expect this to continue for the next several days. For the central portion of the state, including Fairbanks, mid and upper-level clouds will continue to move into the area over the ridge to the west. This weather pattern will persist for much of the week. The northern portions of Alaska look to have great visibility for any activity through much of the week with just intermittent mid to upper-level clouds moving through at times.
The best shot for being able to see any activity for the southern third of the state will come Friday (Mar 11) night and into Saturday (Mar 12) morning once clouds begin to move out of the area. These good seeing conditions should persist into Sunday (Mar 13) evening and early Monday (Mar 14) morning. The middle portion of the state (Fairbanks) will see great conditions moving in Friday night and persist through Sunday. There is a chance of some upper-level clouds moving into the Fairbanks region late on Sunday, but conditions should be great for viewing!
To sum up: Most areas will fight clouds through the week. Anchorage will see the best chance for clear skies on Friday and Saturday night with Fairbanks having a good shot from Friday and well into Monday. As always, keep an eye on the skies and the forecast. Cloud conditions can change and you might just find a great hole to provide for some excellent aurora watching!
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