The Aurora Borealis: Nature’s Polar Light Show

The Aurora Borealis, or Northern Lights, shines across high-latitude skies near the Arctic Circle.
It is caused by charged particles from the Sun colliding with Earth’s atmosphere.
The lights often glow green, but can also shimmer in red, purple, or blue.
Displays form in an auroral oval around Earth’s magnetic north pole.
Intense solar storms can push auroras farther south, even into mid-latitudes.
The Northern Lights can dance, ripple, or swirl like glowing curtains in the sky.
The name “Aurora Borealis” comes from the Roman goddess of dawn and the Greek word for north wind.
Ancient peoples saw them as omens, messages from gods, or spirits of the departed.
Modern science uses auroras to study space weather and the Sun–Earth connection.
The Aurora Borealis is one of the most breathtaking natural wonders on Earth.