[NetRodent]

That's true, however you don't often see auroras in Pennsylvania. I gew up near Williamsport and I only remember one occasion when we saw an aurora. Since moving to Montreal a few years ago I've seen them a few times, although with all the light pollution on the island they're hard to see from downtown.

Generally I've found when non-astronomers talk about watching solar flares, they expect to see something like the following. I suppose I should have been more clear in my original post.