Why Auroral propagation happens when charged particles from the Sun, funneled by Earth's magnetic field into the polar regions, ionize patches of the E region at high latitudes. That requires a disturbed magnetic field, which is exactly what a severe geomagnetic storm (high K index, following a coronal mass ejection or fast solar wind stream) produces. Stations aim their antennas north at the auroral curtain and use it as a reflector, mostly on 6 meters and 2 meters, with signals arriving badly distorted and buzzy so CW is favored over SSB.
Watch out Quiet geomagnetic conditions are the opposite of what is needed and generally give the best HF conditions instead; meteor showers support meteor scatter, a completely separate mode using ionized trails from burning meteors.
Aurora needs a storm: high K index, antennas north, buzzy CW. Quiet geomagnetic field means no aurora.