Aurora Borealis – The Northern Lights

Aurora is the name of the Roman Goddess of Dawn. Borealis refers to the northerly winds. Quite literally these are the lights that are seen in the northern hemisphere’s polar region. The countries where you can see the Aurora Borealis are Sweden, Norway, Finland, Iceland, Russia, Alaska, Canada and rarely in Scotland.

These lights tend to show up in the sky in rainbow colors and chase each other. The spectacle is splendid to behold and have found many a mention in history as well as mythology. They have been believed to be everything from Valkyries to spirits of ancestors by different races.

What they essentially are, as per science, is charged particles from the sun. They get deflected to the polar regions of the Earth due to the magnetic pole. Here they collide with each other and release light. This is what causes that spectacular display akin to fireworks in the sky.

Of course the weather plays a part in being able to view this vision. Ideally a clear starry night is best. Also moving away from urban lights makes it easier to spot the aurora borealis. This also helps in reducing the blocks formed by air pollution. Perhaps it would make an interesting science project to check just how many sightings take place in a month!