Free eBooks on Aurora Borealis
What is the Aurora Borealis or Northern Lights?
An aurora (plural: aurorae or auroras; from the Latin word aurora, "sunrise" or the Roman goddess of dawn) is a natural light display in the sky particularly in the high latitude (Arctic and Antarctic) regions, caused by the collision of energetic charged particles with atoms in the high altitude atmosphere (thermosphere). In northern latitudes, the effect is known as the aurora borealis (or the northern lights), named after the Roman goddess of dawn, Aurora, and the Greek name for the north wind, Boreas.
Auroras seen near the magnetic pole may be high overhead, but from
farther away, they illuminate the northern horizon as a greenish glow or
sometimes a faint red, as if the Sun were rising from an unusual
direction.