Have you seen Aurora in the night sky? If not, the International Space Station (ISS) gave a mesmerizing spectacle on Thursday a breathtaking video of vibrant green auroras dancing across Earth’s night sky. These vibrant green auroras resemble a green fog-like nature’s own fireworks display. The footage was captured from the ISS, which orbits our planet approximately 250 miles (400 kilometers) above the blue sky.
What is the Aurora Borealis?
The Aurora Borealis is a natural light fireworks display that appears as shimmering, colorful waves in the night sky specially appear in the region of South and North pole. The lights can be green, pink, red, yellow, blue, and violet, with green and pink being the most common, lights depend upon the gases which interact.
How does Aurora form?
The magnetic storms that have been triggered by solar activity, such as solar flares mean coronal mass ejection or explosion on Sun. Those charged particles from the sun colliding with Earth’s magnetic field.
When these particles seep through Earth’s magnetosphere, they cause substorms. Then fast moving particles slam into our thin, high atmosphere, colliding with Earth’s oxygen and nitrogen particles. As these air particles shed the energy they picked up from the collision, each atom starts to glow in a different color.
As these particles interact, they create luminous bands that fold, swirl, and ripple across the atmosphere. It’s a cosmic dance that amaze both scientists and stargazers.
The auroras—both the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis) and the Southern Lights (Aurora Australis)—occur near the poles. When solar winds buffet against Earth’s atmosphere, they energize the gases, causing them to emit light. Oxygen produces green and red hues, while nitrogen contributes to the purples and pinks we sometimes see.
Other planets get Auroras?
Auroras aren’t unique to our Earth; they also exist on other celestial bodies. Let’s take a Solar System tour:
- Mars: Despite its patchy magnetic field lines, Mars boasts a recently discovered type of aurora called a “sinuous discrete” aurora. It snakes halfway around the Red Planet, creating a mesmerizing display.
- Saturn: On Saturn, swirling red lights grace its southern pole. These auroras are generated by weather patterns, adding to the planet’s otherworldly beauty.
- Uranus: Its tilted magnetic field results in intricate auroras that form in unexpected regions. Uranus is a bit of a celestial mess, aurora-wise!
- Jupiter: The most powerful auroras in the solar system occur here. They’re up to 30 times stronger than Earth’s and emit mostly infrared light, with visible light, X-rays, and radio waves following suit.
