Credit & Copyright: Paul Aslop
Explanation:
Are those green clouds or aurora?
Photographed above two weeks ago, puffy green aurora help the
Moon illuminate the serene Willow Lake and the snowy
Wrangell and
Saint Elias Mountains in eastern
Alaska,
USA.
Although auroras might first appear to be moonlit clouds,
they only add
light to the sky
and do not block background stars from view.
Called northern lights in the northern hemisphere,
auroras are caused by
collisions between
charged particles from the magnetosphere and air molecules
high in the Earth's atmosphere.
If viewed from space, auroras can be
seen to glow in
X-ray and ultraviolet light as well.
Predictable auroras likely occur a few days after a
powerful magnetic event
has been seen on the
Sun.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: aurora - star trail - magnetic field
Publications with words: aurora - star trail - magnetic field
See also:
- APOD: 2024 January 14 Á Dragon Aurora over Iceland
- APOD: 2024 January 3 Á A SAR Arc from New Zealand
- APOD: 2023 December 12 Á Aurora and Milky Way over Norway
- The SAR and the Milky Way
- APOD: 2023 November 5 Á Creature Aurora Over Norway
- APOD: 2023 October 22 Á Ghost Aurora over Canada
- Cosmos in Reflection