Aurora over Georgian Bluffs, Ontario, Canada

Aurora over Georgian Bluffs, Ontario, Canada

On Earth, auroras are mainly created by particles originally emitted by the Sun in the form of solar wind. When this stream of electrically charged particles gets close to our planet, it interacts with the magnetic field, which acts as a gigantic shield. While it protects Earth’s environment from solar wind particles, it can also trap a small fraction of them. Particles trapped within the magnetosphere—the region of space surrounding Earth in which charged particles are affected by its magnetic field—can be energized and then follow the magnetic field lines down to the magnetic poles. There, they interact with oxygen and nitrogen atoms in the upper layers of the atmosphere, creating the flickering, colorful lights visible in the polar regions here on Earth.

Earth auroras have different names depending on which pole they occur at. Aurora Borealis, or the northern lights, is the name given to auroras around the north pole and Aurora Australis, or the southern lights, is the name given for auroras around the south pole.

Learn more:
The Colors of the Aurora (U.S. National Park Service)
https://www.nps.gov/articles/-articles-aps-v8-i1-c9.htm

NASA - About Aurora
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/sunearth/aurora-news-stories/index.html

Image Details: 

Canon 6D, Samyang 14mm f/2.8 @ f/2.8, ISO 6400, 15 seconds

Image Credit & Copyright: Northern Lights Graffiti (CC by 2.0)

Location: Georgian Bluffs, Ontario

Image Date: Sept. 18, 2023

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