The northern lights could return once again to skies over Indiana late Monday night, Dec. 8, nearly a month after colorful auroras dazzled not only the Hoosier State, but Florida, too.

Over the weekend, scientists with NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center caught a powerful coronal mass ejection (CME) expected to collide with Earth’s upper atmosphere sometime Monday.

Federal forecasters on Dec. 8 released an aurora forecast map that includes nearly a dozen U.S. states with chances to see the northern lights directly overhead. The southern-most viewing line slices just north of Indiana, but that doesn’t rule out Indiana’s chances.

Article continues after photo gallery.

A different forecast model by the Geophysical Institute at the University of Alaska paints a rosier outlook. It predicts the northern lights might be viewable low on the horizon as far south as Louisville.

Space weather, of course, is notoriously difficult to predict. Hoosiers might step outside late Monday night to find beautiful auroras of purple, pink and green, or they might gaze up and see diddly squat. Here’s what stargazing Hoosiers should know.

What states could see the auroras tonight, Dec. 8, 2025?

At least ten U.S. states have a chance to see the northern lights directly overhead on Monday, Dec. 8, according to NOAA’s aurora forecast map. They include:

1. Alaska;
2. Washington;
3. Idaho;
4. Montana;
5. Wyoming;
6. North Dakota;
7. South Dakota;
8. Minnesota;
9. Wisconsin;
10. Michigan.

When are the northern lights tonight, Dec. 8, 2025? What time?

Auroras could be visible in more states than those listed above, according to the University of Alaska at Fairbanks, Geophysical Institute website, which tracks the phenomenon.

Beginning at 10 p.m. ET, Monday, Dec. 8, until 1 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 9, the institute predicts high aurora activity will be seen in cities that include:

• Vancouver, British Columbia;
• Helena, Montana;
• Minneapolis, Minnesota;
• Toronto, Ontario;
• Montpelier, Vermont.

According to its map of aurora activity, the institute shows the northern lights could also appear low on the horizon on Dec. 8 as far south as Indianapolis, including cities in these other U.S. states:

• Iowa;
• Illinois;
• Indiana;
• Kentucky;
• Ohio;
• Pennsylvania;
• New York;
• Maine and across New England.

INJURY REPORT

PACERS

Ben Sheppard: Out – Calf

Tyrese Haliburton: Out – Achilles

Quenton Jackson: Out – Hamstring

Aaron Nesmith: Out – Knee

Obi Toppin: Out – Foot

Kam Jones: Out – Back

KINGS

Keegan Murray: Day-to-day – Trapezius

Domantas Sabonis: Out – Knee

Dennis Schroder: Out – Hip

Game date, time and location: Monday, Dec. 8, 7:00 p.m. EST, Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, Indiana

TV: FanDuel Sports Network Indiana, NBC Sports California

Radio: 93.5/107.5 The Fan (Indiana), Sports 1140 AM (Sacramento)

VITALS: The Indiana Pacers (5-18) and Sacramento Kings (6-17) meet for the first of two regular season matchups. The two teams met twice last season, both resulting in wins for the Pacers. The Pacers are 55-45 all-time versus the Kings during the regular season, including 33-17 in home games and 22-28 in road games.

PROJECTED STARTERS

PACERS

G Andrew Nembhard

G Bennedict Mathurin

C Jay Huff

F Garrison Matthews

F Pascal Siakam

KINGS

G Russell Westbrook

G Zach LaVine

C Maxime Raynaud

F DeMar DeRozan

F Keegan Murray

Spread: Pacers -3.5 (-110), Kings +3.5 (-110)

Moneyline: Pacers -162, Kings +136

Total points scored: 233.5 (over -108, under -112)

QUOTABLE

Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle addresses recent wins and upcoming Kings game: “Getting back on defense was a big part of it. We did well in both games. We did good things offensively that helped our defense as well. Sacramento has got two Hall-of-Famers on their team, you know, DeRozan and Westbrook. They got Monk coming off the bench who’s explosive. They got LaVine who’s been an All-Star, who got 42 points last night, they smashed Miami last night. They got Murray, they got a bunch of guys. This guy Raynaud is a very good young big who’s very skilled.” … “It’s a big challenge.”

Alexander Toledo is a contributor to Indiana Pacers On SI and producer/co-host of the Five on the Floor podcast, covering the Miami Heat and NBA. He can be reached at Twitter: @tropicalblanket

Ohio State was looking to cap off an undefeated regular season with a win over Indiana in the Big Ten Championship Game Saturday, but it wasn’t meant to be. In a defensive struggle, the Hoosiers made more plays when it mattered most and took advantage of their opportunities late for an old-school, classic 13-10 win in Lucas Oil Stadium

Give Indiana credit, but it was not the best game for the Buckeyes, and Ohio State head coach Ryan Day was clearly short and irritated after the contest in his postgame press conference. He didn’t take anything away from the Hoosiers, but was quick to point out the lack of execution by his team.

We have the entire Big Ten Championship Game press conference by Ryan Day and quarterback Juilian Sayin, thanks to the WBNS 10TV YouTube channel. Day laments the third-down conversions, play of the offensive line, lack of a running game, and more.

Ohio State must now regroup and try to go on another magical run like it did last year after another 13-10 loss as it gets ready for the College Football Playoff. We’ll know exactly what that path looks like on Sunday when the last CFP rankings are revealed.