The magic of Aurora lights

For those planning a holiday to the Arctic, there is plenty to look forward to; the incredible frozen landscapes and rich cultures that inhabit them, and the wildlife that is like nothing else on Earth, are more than enough to make anyone fall in love with our planet's northernmost regions. And that is without mentioning one of the most awe-inspiring elements of polar expeditions: the aurora Lights.

What are aurora lights?

The aurora or polar lights have intrigued those who see them on polar expeditions since time immemorial, appearing as a brightly colored light in the Arctic night sky. These lights are caused by the collision of charged electrons with atoms in our atmosphere. These electrons come from the sun on solar winds and are then redirected by the Earth's magnetic field, which acts as a buffer against those solar winds. So in essence, the beautiful flow of light across the sky is in fact a visual effect of the planet's in-built defences against solar radiation. The varying colors of the lights depend on the kinds of atoms they encounter as they flow through the magnetosphere and into the upper atmosphere: oxygen causes green and red lights, while nitrogen causes blue and purple lights. The contour and flow of the aurora lights is caused by the continual shifting of these forces and elements.

When Can You See Northern Lights?

The best time to see the lights is in the winter months. The reason for that is that the sky is its darkest in the winter and no other lights appear in the sky to distract from the beautiful show.

The area that has the most views of the aurora lights is the arctic or the antarctic. You can see them almost every other night if the sky is clear. The truth is that you can see the lights in the regions south and north of the aurora zone as well.

Why are aurora lights important to us?

Auroras are essentially geomagnetic or electromagnetic phenomenon. They Auroras are capable of producing high electrical impulses, and can easily meddle with the electric fields on the earth. Sudden disrupting of electric power supply occurs due to interference with the power grids.

Telegraph lines have been reported to be affected and rendered totally useless during the occurrence of these Auroras.

The Auroras have also been known to affect the weather, but precise and exact information seems to be missing. Yet it can be firmly said that the occurrence of the Auroras have been found to accelerate the storms originating in the North pacific, as compared to other times.

The temperature has also been known to be affected by these Auroras. People living in the areas which witness these polar lights often report the air to become quite crisper and chilly during the Auroras.

Astronomers are trying to discover methods aimed at predicting the occurrence of these Auroras, in order to gain control over their effects on the earth in a more better way.