Aurora Borealis

The aurora borealis, also known as the northern lights, is the rippling night-sky light display found at the northernmost reaches of the Earth. The south has a corresponding aurora australis, also known as the southern lights. The northern and southern auroras occur when charged particles released by the sun, called the solar wind, are guided along the Earth's magnetic field to its poles and interact with particles in the upper atmosphere there. How to see the Northern Lights.

Related Topics: Earth, Solar Flares and Space Weather 

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The northern lights over Greenland. The oldest documented observation of an aurora may date to the early 10th century B.C.

Earliest documented aurora found in ancient Chinese text

By Laura Geggel published

The oldest documented observation of an aurora may be in an ancient Chinese text.

Artist's impression of discrete auroras over Mars.

Newfound auroras on Mars defy easy explanation

By Elizabeth Howell published

Scientists with the United Arab Emirates' Mars mission have spotted a 'worm-like' aurora stretching halfway across the Red Planet.

Auroras dazzle above a cabin in Trapper Creek, Alaska on April 11, 2022.

Haunting northern lights glow in green in images taken from Alaska (photos)

By Elizabeth Howell published

Strong solar activity generated green glowing auroras over Alaska, as one photographer witnessed April 11 from Trapper Creek.

An aurora could happen as far south as New York City.

Solar storm could supercharge northern lights as far south as New York

By Elizabeth Howell published

After a dead sunspot hurled a ball of plasma toward Earth earlier this week, medium-sized auroras may stretch even farther south than usual.

A solar flare and coronal mass ejection were observed being launched from “dead” sunspot AR 2987 on April 11, 2022.

'Dead sunspot' launches ball of plasma toward Earth

By Stephanie Pappas published

The "corpse" of a sunspot exploded Monday (April 11), triggering a mass ejection of solar material that is headed in Earth's direction.

An image of the spinning orb of blue light moving across an aurora-filled sky in Alaska.

Chinese rocket photobombs aurora with spinning orb of light

By Harry Baker published

A spinning orb of light that slowly moved across the sky in Alaska on March 29 was actually frozen fuel left by a Chinese rocket, according to experts.

An aurora shines above west central Saskatchewan, Canada in this image taken March 30, 2022 by photographer Jenny Hagan.

Stunning northern lights from intense solar storms thrill stargazers (photos)

By Elizabeth Howell published

A series of solar storms aimed at Earth this week have supercharged the Earth's auroras, creating dazzling displays for skywatchers.

This colorized image captured by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory space telescope shows a powerful solar flare blasting from the sun on March 31, 2022.

The sun let out another flare and the photos are stunning

By Tereza Pultarova published

NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory captured yet another solar flare blasting from the same overactive sunspot that triggered radio blackouts and stunning aurora displays on Earth earlier this week.

NOAA's G GOES-16 satellite captured the eruption, the white area near the top and center of the image, that occurred around 7:29 a.m. EDT on March 28.

Earth braces for solar storm, potential aurora displays

By Tereza Pultarova published

A powerful solar storm is set to hit Earth on Thursday with spectacular aurora displays accompanying it after the sun fired nearly 20 flares from a single sun spot in just two days.

A NASA-funded sounding rocket launches into an aurora in the early morning of March 3, 2014, over Venetie, Alaska. NASA will launch a similar small sounding rocket in late March 2022.

NASA set to launch 2 rockets into the northern lights

By Stephanie Pappas published

Researchers plan to launch two rockets into the heart of the northern lights. Here's what they might find.

New research confirms how particles from space can be sent careening down into Earth’s atmosphere to create the aurora, filling in a missing piece in how this stunning natural phenomenon is generated.

Why are we seeing more northern lights this year?

By Sandra C Chapman published

In 2022, we have seen spectacular polar lights displays in the sky above the U.K., visible form many more places than is usual.

A coronal mass ejection unleashes a prominence out of the sun's outermost atmosphere in this 2010 NASA file photo.

2 geomagnetic storms will lash Earth, but don't worry (too much)

By Brandon Specktor published

Two mild geomagnetic storms are expected to hit Earth on March 14 and 15 after a large coronal outburst, NOAA warns.

The northern lights shimmered in the night sky over Tromsø, Norway, on Jan. 9, 2014, after a coronal mass ejection arrived in near-Earth space, following a two-day journey from the sun.

Northern lights (aurora borealis): What they are & how to see them

By Stefanie Waldek published

REFERENCE Learn all about the northern lights, including the science behind their colors, the display's ancient history and how to see the phenomenon.

The ringed planet Saturn still puzzles astronomers.

Swirling winds of Saturn trigger never-before-seen auroras

By Samantha Mathewson published

Some of Saturn’s auroras are triggered by swirling winds within the planet’s own atmosphere, a completely new type of aurora not seen on any other planet before, new research suggests.

The Southern Lights as viewed from the International Space Station in 2012.

The Arctic 'ring of fire' solar eclipse of 2021 changed southern auroras. Here's how.

By Doris Elin Urrutia published

A solar eclipse on one side of Earth stimulated aurora displays on the opposite side of our planet, according to a new study.

Comet Leonard visible in an image captured by a small Chinese satellite on a backdrop of polar lights.

Comet Leonard shines amid aurora and meteor shower in stunning footage by Chinese spacecraft

By Andrew Jones published

Comet Leonard shines brightly in images captured by a small Chinese satellite on the backdrop of aurora and passing meteors.

A powerful solar flare erupted from the sun on Monday (Dec. 20)

Solar storm may amp up northern lights before Christmas

By Tereza Pultarova published

A solar storm that erupted from the sun on Monday (Dec. 20) may boost northern lights displays around the north pole just ahead of Santa's trip this weekend.

Aurora Over Abisko National Park in Sweden

Where to see the northern lights: 2022 aurora borealis guide

By Mike Wall, Elizabeth Howell, Tereza Pultarova published

Where should you go to get the best look at the dancing, dazzling display known as the aurora borealis?

Astronauts at the International Space Station enjoyed the most stunning display of aurora borealis thanks to a cannibal coronal mass ejection.

'Cannibal' sun eruption gives departing astronauts their best aurora views yet

By Tereza Pultarova published

Astronauts at the International Space Station enjoyed the most spectacular aurora display of their entire mission over the weekend after a massive blast of material from the sun reached our planet.

The northern lights are seen over Teriberka, Russia, a village with the population of about 1,000 people, located some 120 km away from the city of Murmansk on the Russian Arctic coast on Oct. 30, 2021.

Halloween northern lights from huge solar flare thrill skywatchers

By Tariq Malik published

A huge solar flare from the sun has spawned a Halloween northern lights show that has stargazers over the moon.