Luminous displays in the polar skies caused by charged particles from the solar wind interacting with Earth's magnetic field and atmosphere. Auroras typically appear as curtains, arcs, or rays of green, red, or blue light.
From Aurora, the Roman goddess of dawn, named by Galileo in 1619 for the dawn-like appearance of these northern lights. The term 'aurora borealis' (northern dawn) and 'aurora australis' (southern dawn) distinguish the polar regions where they occur.
Auroras occur simultaneously at both poles in mirror-image patterns! The charged particles follow Earth's magnetic field lines, creating conjugate auroras that dance in synchrony between the Arctic and Antarctic, connected by invisible magnetic highways through space.
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