Earth hit by 'severe' solar storm

The Earth was hit Monday by an intense solar storm that could bring the northern lights to night skies further south than normal, a US agency announced. 

Conditions of a level-four geomagnetic storm -- on a scale of five -- were observed Monday from 1500 GMT, according to a specialized center at the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

These conditions may persist for several hours, but were not expected to increase further in intensity, NOAA added in a statement.