Solar flare? Yes, but tonight's northern lights have a more spectacular cause.

Though widely described as a 'solar flare,' the star of Tuesday's solar storm was a much rarer – and much larger – coronal mass ejection, which is distorting Earth's magnetic field and will produce the northern lights (and southern lights) tonight.

• 

NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory captured this image of the sun belching out massive quantities of energy and matter on Tuesday, June 7. Though some confuse this with a solar flare, this coronal mass ejection was much larger – and much, much more massive – than any solar flare. Because of this solar outburst, half the planet will be able to see the northern or southern lights on Wednesday night (weather permitting).

Solar Dynamics Observatory / NASA / AP