Technologies

Aurora Borealis Might Be Visible in the Far North Skies Tonight

There’s a chance for G4 (severe) geomagnetic storm tonight, NOAA space weather forecaster Shawn Dahl tells CNET.

Skygazers in the northern region of the US and Canada might catch a glimpse of the Northern Lights Wednesday night and into Thursday. The NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center issued a G3 (strong) geomagnetic storm watch for April 16, when plasma ejected from the sun is expected to reach Earth’s magnetic field. Minor geomagnetic storm conditions are likely to carry on until April 17, the agency reported.

The colorful lights splashed across the night sky are caused by geomagnetic storms in our atmosphere, and the SWPC pays attention to when these might occur. Geomagnetic storms in the atmosphere can arise from a cosmic phenomenon called coronal mass ejections. These surging ejections of solar wind come from the corona, the sun’s outermost layer. CMEs consist of plasma and magnetic fields and can take hours or days to reach Earth.

When CMEs arrive, they cause disturbances in our atmosphere by disrupting our planet’s magnetic field. This creates geomagnetic storms. Coming sooner than expected, the first CME arrived earlier on Tuesday, spaceweather.com reported.

NOAA space weather forecaster Shawn Dahl told CNET there’s a chance for G4 (severe) levels, should the magnetic field of the CME become favorable.

«By this, I mean the magnetic field of the CME needs to be opposite that of Earth’s to get a good geomagnetic reaction,» Dahl said. «Think of it like opposite polarity magnets that attract.»

Where can you see the aurora?

Most places in the US won’t have an opportunity to see the aurora borealis, but people in the most northern regions (especially Alaska) and Canada might get a chance to see the lights. However, clouds, rain and snow might make it hard to see.

For the best chance of seeing it, according to Accuweather, you’ll need to have an unobstructed view of the northern horizon and be using long-exposure photography to capture images of the phenomenon.

The Northern Lights have certain times of year when they’re more likely to be observed. You have the best chance of catching aurora borealis in March, April, September and October, as these are the months near the spring and autumn equinoxes, when the Earth’s position to the sun is ideal for geomagnetic storms.

«The equinoxes are the transition points between which hemisphere is tilted toward the sun,» Shannon Schmoll, director of the Abrams Planetarium, told CNET last month. «At this point, the Earth’s magnetic field is at a more favorable angle, closer to perpendicular, that allows easier interaction of the charged solar particles with the Earth’s magnetic field and atmosphere.»

April is a good month for watching the Northern Lights because we’re at Solar Maximum — the period of the highest solar activity in the 11-year solar cycle.

«During this time, we expect to see more sunspots, and therefore, there’s a higher chance of high-impact space weather occurring on any given day,» Elsayed Talaat, director of the Office of Space Weather Observations at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, said last October.

So, if you live where the aurora borealis might be visible tonight, make sure to head away from city lights and check out the night sky to the north.

Technologies

Today’s Wordle Hints, Answer and Help for March 15, #1730

Here are hints and the answer for today’s Wordle for March 15, No. 1,730.

Looking for the most recent Wordle answer? Click here for today’s Wordle hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Wordle puzzle is a fairly common word, but the beginning letter is one I rarely guess. If you need a new starter word, check out our list of which letters show up the most in English words. If you need hints and the answer, read on.

Today’s Wordle hints

Before we show you today’s Wordle answer, we’ll give you some hints. If you don’t want a spoiler, look away now.

Wordle hint No. 1: Repeats

Today’s Wordle answer has no repeated letters.

Wordle hint No. 2: Vowels

Today’s Wordle answer has two vowels.

Wordle hint No. 3: First letter

Today’s Wordle answer begins with G.

Wordle hint No. 4: Last letter

Today’s Wordle answer ends with E.

Wordle hint No. 5: Meaning

Today’s Wordle answer can refer to a mark that a student receives in a class.

TODAY’S WORDLE ANSWER

Today’s Wordle answer is GRADE.

Yesterday’s Wordle answer

Yesterday’s Wordle answer, March 14, No. 1729, was ANKLE.

Recent Wordle answers

March 10, No. 1725: SHOAL

March 11, No. 1726: TEDDY

March 12, No. 1727: SMELL

March 13, No. 1728: EATEN

What’s the best Wordle starting word?

Don’t be afraid to use our tip sheet ranking all the letters in the alphabet by frequency of uses. In short, you want starter words that lean heavy on E, A and R, and don’t contain Z, J and Q.

Some solid starter words to try:

ADIEU

TRAIN

STARE

NOISE

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for March 15, #538

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for March 15, No. 538.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Today is Selection Sunday, and the Connections: Sports Edition puzzle is all about the NCAA basketball tournament. If you’re struggling with today’s puzzle but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by The Times. It doesn’t appear in the NYT Games app, but it does in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Oops!

Green group hint: Not the second word.

Blue group hint: They direct the team.

Purple group hint: They made it to the Big Dance.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: Basketball fouls.

Green group: First words in NCAA tournament rounds.

Blue group: Women’s college basketball coaches.

Purple group: Teams qualified for the 2026 Men’s NCAA tournament.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is basketball fouls. The four answers are block, charge, hold and reach-in.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is first words in NCAA tournament rounds. The four answers are elite, final, second and sweet.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is women’s college basketball coaches. The four answers are Auriemma, Close, Ivey and Staley.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is teams qualified for the 2026 Men’s NCAA tournament. The four answers are Gonzaga, High Point, Queens and Troy.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Sunday, March 15

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for March 15.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? Today’s wasn’t terribly tough, but read on for all the answers. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.