How did the Northern Lights come into being?

Aurora is essentially an optical phenomenon excited by the operation of atoms and molecules in the uppermost layer of the earth's atmosphere (above the ground 100-200 km). It consists of three elements: the sun, the wind, the earth's magnetic field and the atmosphere. The so-called "solar wind" is an energy that the sun constantly radiates to the universe. It consists of electrons and protons. Due to the intense activity of the sun, countless charged particles are emitted. When charged particles flow to the earth and enter the range of the earth's magnetic field, they will enter the upper atmosphere near the north and south magnetic poles at high speed along the earth's magnetic field lines, and collide with particles such as oxygen atoms and nitrogen molecules, resulting in "electromagnetic storms" and "visible light" phenomena, which become a striking "aurora".

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1, natural phenomenon

The formation of northern lights

The word "aurora" comes from the Latin Ios. Legend has it that Ios is the incarnation of "Dawn" in Greek mythology, the daughter of the Greek god Titan and the sister of the sun god and the moon goddess.

When humans first looked up at the sky and saw the Northern Lights, the Northern Lights were always a "mystery". For a long time, people have developed their own aurora legends. Eskimos believe that "Aurora is a torch for ghosts and gods to guide the souls of the dead to heaven". The aborigines, on the other hand, regard "aurora as the appearance of gods, and think that the fast-moving aurora will make the gods trample on the empty voice, take away people's souls and leave bad luck".

For a long time, the cause of aurora has been debated endlessly. Some people think that it is a fire burning at the outer edge of the earth; Some people think it is light reflected from the sky after sunset; Others believe that it is an energy released by polar ice and snow at night after absorbing and storing sunlight during the day. It was not until man sent a satellite rocket into space that the mystery of this celestial phenomenon was explained physically.

Aurora is essentially an optical phenomenon excited by the operation of atoms and molecules in the uppermost layer of the earth's atmosphere (above the ground 100-200 km). It consists of three elements: the sun, the wind, the earth's magnetic field and the atmosphere. The so-called "solar wind" is an energy that the sun constantly radiates to the universe. It consists of electrons and protons. Due to the intense activity of the sun, countless charged particles are emitted. When charged particles flow to the earth and enter the range of the earth's magnetic field, they will enter the upper atmosphere near the north and south magnetic poles at high speed along the earth's magnetic field lines, and collide with particles such as oxygen atoms and nitrogen molecules, resulting in "electromagnetic storms" and "visible light" phenomena, which become a striking "aurora".

Probability of aurora appearance

Aurora is most common in two circular belts near the north-south magnetic latitude of 67, which are called the Southern Aurora and the Northern Aurora respectively. The northern hemisphere is dominated by Alaska, northern Canada, Siberia, Greenland, the southern tip of Iceland and the northern coast of Norway; The southern hemisphere is concentrated near Antarctica. It is worth mentioning that Alaska and northern Canada, which are near the North Pole, are the best places to watch the aurora, and fairbanks, Alaska, has won the reputation of "Northern Lights Capital", with more than 200 days of aurora in a year.

The shape of the aurora changes instantly.

Aurora is a natural astronomical wonder. It has no fixed pattern and different colors. The colors are mostly green, white, yellow and blue, and occasionally they show gorgeous red and purple, graceful and mysterious. Aurora can only be seen in cold autumn and winter nights and high latitudes. The best time is from 10 in the afternoon to 2 am, and sometimes it lasts about 1 hour.

Generally speaking, there are four types of aurora: arc aurora, ribbon aurora, curtain aurora and radial aurora. What appears in the north is called the Northern Lights, and what appears in the south is called the Southern Lights.

If you have the chance to go to Alaska, you must go to see the charming Northern Lights, capture the ever-changing super "electro-optic show", and you will completely fall in love with the Northern Lights!

For a long time, people have been eager to understand and explore the mystery of aurora. In the last century, people used cameras, video cameras and satellites to clearly see and understand the discharge phenomenon caused by the collision between solar energy and the earth's magnetic field. It is a river of electron light, releasing one million megawatts of light in the sky 60 miles away from the earth. In an unscientific era, people can describe this wonderful natural scenery as long as they use their infinite imagination, so there are many mysterious legends handed down from ancient times. The origin of the name of the Northern Lights is that the scientist Cassidy called this phenomenon "Aurora" after repeated consideration. She is the goddess of weaving in ancient Roman mythology, representing the dawn before sunrise. Bekele, a scientist, believes that electrons emitted by the sun fly freely in space. When they break into the earth's magnetic field, electrons collide with gas and emit light. This is the Northern Lights. His theory was not proved until 60 years later. Scientists first proved that the earth has two magnetic fields after the launch of American rocket 14. A year later, Harbor 2 first measured the plasma of the sun (the charged substance that constitutes the solar airflow), and the solar airflow can touch the earth. Solar airflow is also called solar wind. These radiations rushed to the earth at a speed of 3 million kilometers. Fortunately, the earth's magnetic field changed the direction of the solar wind and protected us from it. When the solar wind collides with the earth's magnetic field, it will generate 654.38+000 trillion yuan of energy, small particles in the earth's atmosphere will release energy, oxygen atoms will emit green or red light, oxygen molecules will emit red or yellow light, and nitrogen molecules will emit purple or pink light. Although scientists have learned a lot about the causes of the aurora at present, the aurora still leaves many problems for people to continue to explore its mystery, such as whether there is sound in the aurora. Aboriginal people in Canada's Arctic Circle say that the Northern Lights will send out whistles and footsteps, which is the sound of souls crossing the snow in heaven. How much energy will be released when the solar wind hits the earth's magnetic field? Wait, these are all mysteries that scientists are eager to solve. Aurora, like itself, is like smoke and fog, which makes us sigh the wonder of nature's creator.