Polar lights (aurora polaris) are a natural phenomenon found in both the northern and southern hemispheres that can be truly awe inspiring. Northern lights are also called by their scientific name, aurora borealis, and southern lights are called aurora australis.
How would you describe the aurora borealis?
The Northern Lights, Aurora Borealis, appear in a clear night sky as swirling rivers of greenish-blue light. They move and dance unpredictably; sometimes barely perceptible, then suddenly growing vivid. In simple terms, the auroras can be explained as an interaction of the solar wind and the Earth’s magnetic field.
What is special about aurora borealis?
The aurora borealis – otherwise known as the northern lights – is a vivid demonstration of the Earth’s magnetic field interacting with charged particles from the sun. It’s also beautiful, and worth braving a cold night out when visiting the high northern (or southern) latitudes.
What can we learn from aurora borealis?
“If there is an orderly aurora like we have with halos around the poles, it can tell you where the magnetic field is and something about its strength, as well as its interaction with the solar wind. The color of the light also tells you about the chemistry of the atmosphere.”
Are the northern lights beautiful?
One of the most renowned natural phenomena in the world are the gorgeous dancing Northern Lights. Rich, vibrant colours glitter and light up the night sky in a display of natural beauty. Most commonly seen are the hues of pink and pale green, but red, yellow, blue and violent have also been captured.
Why is it called the aurora borealis?
Though it was Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei who coined the name “aurora borealis” in 1619 — after the Roman goddess of dawn, Aurora, and the Greek god of the north wind, Boreas — the earliest suspected record of the northern lights is in a 30,000-year-old cave painting in France (opens in new tab).
What does Borealis mean?
The word borealis is Latin for boreal, which simply means “northern.” The aurora borealis is not the only aurora on Earth. The aurora in the Southern Hemisphere is called aurora australis or the southern lights.
When can you see aurora borealis?
The best time to see the northern lights are on dark, clear nights in the winter months and close to a New Moon. Generally, from September to April are the best viewing months. To ensure you get the best from this natural light show, you should start gazing upwards several hours after sundown.
Where is the best place to see Northern Lights?
What are the best places to see the Northern Lights?
- Tromso, Norway. Based in the heart of the aurora zone in the Norwegian Arctic, the city is widely regarded as one of the world’s best places to see the Northern Lights.
- Swedish Lapland.
- Reykjavik, Iceland.
- Yukon, Canada.
- Rovaniemi, Finnish Lapland.
- Ilulissat, Greenland.
Where is the aurora borealis located?
1. Norway. The northern reaches of Norway are nicely nestled within the Arctic circle, and the mega-long nights in winter make perfect aurora viewing conditions. The town of Tromsø is a popular place for Northern Light-hunters to base themselves.
What causes aurora borealis colors?
The unique colors of light produced by a gas are called its “spectrum”. The auroral lights’ colors are determined by the spectra of gases in the Earth’s atmosphere, and the height at which the most collisions take place. Incoming particles tend to collide with different gases at different heights.
How do you use aurora borealis in a sentence?
1. The aurora borealis was like that, too. 2. The sky was aflame with the aurora borealis, the eerily luminous northern lights.
Do the Northern Lights happen every night?
Auroras happen in every month but because they’re impossible to see against the super-light late night summer skies far up north, our trips to see them tend to take place when the night skies are properly dark.
How many auroras are there?
Depending on how you count, there are as many as 27 Auroras in existence today. They are found on both coasts and from Minnesota to Texas, but tend to favor the North for reasons I discovered as I traveled.