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Aurora lights up Alaska skies with stunning green and red display

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Streaks of shimmering green and red bands exploded in the dark skies above Alaska’s largest city Tuesday as the aurora provided a light show for early morning dog walkers, joggers and commuters.

Anchorage was not alone in seeing vivid displays of the aurora following a major disturbance in the Earth’s magnetic field.

The aurora didn’t disappoint, and its reach overnight Monday and into Tuesday was wide. Social media was lit up with stunning aurora photos from places including Alaska, San Francisco, Chicago, Canada and across Europe.

The intense displays came amid intense geomagnetic and solar radiation storms, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Space Weather Prediction Center.

In November, solar storms brought vibrant auroras to parts of Europe including Hungary and the United Kingdom, and as far south in the United States as Texas.

UK firefighters out in force to tackle fires on hottest day of the year

LONDON (AP) — Firefighters were tackling multiple fires in central England on Thursday after the U.K. recorded its hottest day of the year as an intense stretch of hot weather continued to grip Europe. The wildfires across the West Midlands, which saw several houses burned to the ground, have been “one of the most significant” incidents the region’s fire service has ever dealt with, chief fire officer Simon Tuhill said. A child and three firefighters were taken to the hospital following the wildfire in Stourbridge. West Midlands mayor Richard Parker described the “multiple fires across our region” as an “extremely worrying and fast-moving situation."
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