The northern aurora borealis paints the night sky with a palette of smooth color above one Nebraska city.

Skywatcher Mark Urwiller caught this stunning view of the aurora borealis, also known as the northern lights, from his vantage point five miles outside Kearney, Nebraska. Urwiller photographed the light show the evening of May 14, 2005, though NASA released the image on May 18.

Auroras light up the sky when charged particles from the Sun, also known as solar wind, enter the Earth’s magnetic field. The wind accelerates electrically charged particles already trapped within the magnetic field. The high-speed particles crash into the Earth’s upper atmosphere over the planet’s polar regions, emitting a multicolored glow.

-- SPACE.com Staff

Credit: M. Urwiller/NASA.