Nordland Fylke

The Northern Lights. Confession. Despite being a student of science most of my life, I needed to consult Googlay (the Nordic reference for Google) to understand it.

I knew it was polar / magnetic related. Though that's my limit of understanding. I've included reference to the science below.

What the science doesn't explain is the ethereal magic and splendour of mother nature's greatest show. I am infinitely grateful and reminded again of how wonderous our world really is. To see the Northern lights in real time. Not out of a National Geographic or with narration of David Attenborough (as much as I could listen to Richard narrate any natural wonder. Along with Morgan Freeman. Gosh life would be lovely with them explaining it every step of the way).

With infinite gratitude.

The Science:

https://www.rmg.co.uk/stories/topics/what-cause…

What is the aurora?

The aurora can be seen near the poles of both the northern and southern hemisphere. In the north the display is known as the aurora borealis; in the south it is called the aurora australis.

These 'northern' and 'southern lights' have fascinated, frightened and inspired humans for centuries. More recently, photographers have gone to remarkable lengths to try and capture the beauty of these atmospheric events.

What causes the Northern Lights?
An aurora is one of the most spectacular displays in the night sky - but how are these curtains of colourful light formed?

See the world's greatest space photography
The aurora borealis, also known as the 'northern lights', is one of the most spectacular displays in the night sky. What is the science behind these curtains of light?

The sight filled the northern sky; the immensity of it was scarcely conceivable. As if from Heaven itself, great curtains of delicate light hung and trembled. Pale green and rose-pink, and as transparent as the most fragile fabric, and at the bottom edge a profound and fiery crimson like the fires of Hell, they swung and shimmered loosely with more grace than the most skilful dancer. Lyra thought she could even hear them: a vast distant whispering swish.

Phillip Pullman, His Dark Materials
What is the aurora?
The aurora can be seen near the poles of both the northern and southern hemisphere. In the north the display is known as the aurora borealis; in the south it is called the aurora australis.

These 'northern' and 'southern lights' have fascinated, frightened and inspired humans for centuries. More recently, photographers have gone to remarkable lengths to try and capture the beauty of these atmospheric events.

See spectacular aurora photography at the Astronomy Photographer of the Year exhibition

What causes the aurora borealis or 'northern lights'?

The lights we see in the night sky are in actual fact caused by activity on the surface of the Sun.

Solar storms on our star's surface give out huge clouds of electrically charged particles. These particles can travel millions of miles, and some may eventually collide with the Earth.

Most of these particles are deflected away, but some become captured in the Earth’s magnetic field, accelerating down towards the north and south poles into the atmosphere. This is why aurora activity is concentrated at the magnetic poles.

“These particles then slam into atoms and molecules in the Earth’s atmosphere and essentially heat them up,” explains Royal Observatory astronomer Tom Kerss. “We call this physical process ‘excitation’, but it’s very much like heating a gas and making it glow.”

What we are seeing therefore are atoms and molecules in our atmosphere colliding with particles from the Sun. The aurora's characteristic wavy patterns and 'curtains' of light are caused by the lines of force in the Earth’s magnetic field.Read more