Often referred to or known as the Auroras, the Northern Lights present a magnificent display of natural light in the night sky. Because these displays occur predominantly in the Polar Regions, they are even sometimes referred to as Aurora Borealis. The closer you get to the North Pole, the more intense and vivid these wonderful Northern Lights become.

While the northern lights usually appear high overhead when viewed from a location close to the magnetic north pole, as one moves further away from the north pole, this magnificent display of natural light tends to illuminate the horizon from one end to the other in a marvellous greenish glow. Having said that, there are times when the northern lights appear to be more of a red colour rather than green. When one considers the way in which these lights can appear to dance in the night sky is hardly surprising that some people view them as being almost eerie in a way, and this is perhaps why they have been referred to as a “dance of the spirits”.

So intrigued were people in the past regarding the northern lights, that even Benjamin Franklin theorized that they were the result of electrical charges being absorbed in the Polar Regions. He also suggested that the intensity of these displays were reliant on the presence of moisture in the air. Of course nowadays we know better, because rather than being the result of electrical charges being absorbed, they’re actually produced because of an interaction between solar winds and the earth’s magnetic field. When charged particles such as protons and electrons, collide with molecules and atoms in the upper atmosphere of the earth, usually above 50 miles, these displays of light take place.

Conclusive evidence shows that these particles originate from the sun and that they arrive here in the earth’s vicinity as low energy solar winds. When this happens, these particles become trapped within the magnetic field of the solar wind itself. This then ends up connecting to the Earth’s magnetic field before eventually entering into the magnetosphere, where they are then propelled towards the earth.

In the Northern Lights, atomic oxygen will give it the characteristic green and red colours, and molecular nitrogen as well as nitrogen ions will give the lights reds, pinks, blue and even violet colours. This is seen when different gasses interact with the upper atmosphere.

Another interesting phenomenon, which can often be seen in a display of the Northern Lights, is when they appear to be curtains of light. Depending on an observer’s perspective, these striations may also appear as a magnificent Corona. This is usually followed by auroral arcs moving towards the equator, sometime around midnight.

While it may be uncommon, the northern lights have been seen from various locations around the world and that such have even made the headlines. Rather than being the norm, this only happens at times when there’s been an above average ejection of coronal mass from the sun.

NASA has accumulated a wealth of photographs of this magnificent phenomenon. As you can imagine, while it may be beautiful to see from here on earth, when seen from outer space, the display is even more spectacular.