What are the northern and southern lights?

The northern and southern lights are colorful flashes in the sky caused by tiny particles from the Sun bouncing around in Earth's atmosphere.

Imagine you're playing with a balloon full of little bouncy balls, that’s kind of what happens up high in the sky. The Sun sends out these tiny particles, called solar winds, which travel through space like a stream of moving balls. When they hit Earth’s invisible shield, called the magnetic field, they get pushed around and bounce into the air above the poles.

Up there, they bump into gases in the sky, just like when you jump on a trampoline, you push it down, and it bounces back up. These bumps make the gases light up, creating swirling colors that look like ribbons or dancing lights in the night sky.

The northern lights, or aurora borealis, are seen near the top of Earth, where it's cold and far north. The southern lights, or aurora australis, appear down south, close to places like Australia or Antarctica. It’s like having two different playgrounds, each with its own version of the same fun game!