What Causes the ‘Glow’ of Aurora Borealis?

The Northern Lights are like a sky show, and they're made by tiny space travelers called charged particles. These particles come from the Sun and zoom through space until they hit Earth's atmosphere. When they hit the air, they bump into gases like oxygen and nitrogen, making them light up in bright colors. That’s what we see as the glowing lights of the Aurora Borealis!

How It Works

The charged particles from the Sun are part of something called the solar wind. When they reach Earth, they go toward the poles, that's why the Northern Lights usually appear near the top of the world.

Take the quiz →

Examples

A charged particle from the Sun hits an oxygen atom and makes it glow green like a little fairy light.
Nitrogen in the air lights up with blue when hit by particles from space, just like a neon sign on the sky.
When many excited atoms release their light at once, you see long glowing ribbons across the night sky.

Ask a question

Discussion

Recent activity

Categories: Space · Aurora Borealis,Space Phenomena,Solar Wind,Atmospheric Science