Spring arrives with wintry weather in east as celestial events punctuate the week

To start the week, two large eruptions from the sun's corona occurred Sunday, which sparked a powerful solar storm.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released a statement Tuesday warning that the geomagnetic storm could potentially impact power grids and GPS tracking.

The geomagnetic storm that resulted allowed the aurora borealis and aurora australis to ignite, providing stargazers with a spectacular light show.

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With skies clear to partly cloudy across much of the Great Lakes region and Northeast, viewing the aurora was possible in parts of Wisconsin, Michigan, New York state and across portions of New England, AccuWeather.com Senior Meteorologist Dave Dombek said Tuesday.

Meanwhile, the temperature roller coaster continued in the Northeast with winter and spring battling it out. Following a brief early week warmup, with temperatures climbing into the 50s and 60s across the region, colder air returned by midweek.

In Boston, the winter snowfall went down in the record books this week.

Breaking the 1995-1996 record of 107.6 inches, Boston Logan International Airport received a colossal 108.6 inches of snow this season following snow through Sunday.

A storm spread snow and a wintry mix back into the mid-Atlantic and Northeast on the first day of spring, Friday.

In the Ohio Valley and Mississippi Valley, winter lessened amid warmer weather, but flooding from snowmelt and rivers swelling caused problems throughout the week.

This influx of rainwater paired with melting snow has caused ice jams, resulting in road closures and putting lives and property at risk.

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The Ohio River crested in Cincinnati at its highest level since 1997 on Sunday. At least five homes have been flooded in the town of New Richmond, located southeast of Cincinnati, according to the Associated Press.

The lower Mississippi River will be on the rise as runoff from its swollen tributaries, including the Ohio River, drains downstream, said AccuWeather.com Senior Meteorologist Kristina Pydynowski.

While chilly air intruded in parts of the East this week, temperatures continued to soar across Southern California, breaking records for the month.

Downtown Los Angeles hit 90 F on Monday, making it the fourth day in a row temperatures in the city soared to 90 F or higher.

From late last week into the early portion of this week, record highs were set for each day in the region, but temperatures of 90 F or higher occurring consecutively in a four-day span has never been recorded for the month of March, AccuWeather.com Western Weather Expert Ken Clark said.

On Friday, March 20, the vernal equinox marks the first day of spring.

However, for 2015, the spring equinox transpired amidst two other celestial events: a total solar eclipse [for some areas] and a new supermoon.

© Matheus Muñoz

Terryland Castle in Galway, Ireland, made for an ideal setting to capture the eclipse.

While the total solar eclipse was visible only from areas of the northern Atlantic Ocean, a replay of the event broadcast by a Slooh.com expedition can be watched here.

"Nothing, and I mean absolutely nothing, in nature is as powerful and spectacular as the totality of a solar eclipse," Slooh Astronomer Bob Berman said.

"Sadly, they only happen every 360 years on average for any given location, which means that a very low percentage of the population has ever seen one."