As they decay back to their original state, they emit distinctive colours of light. The realisation of the enormity of the universe washes over you, and you feel small in a good way and full of wonder. These atoms become excited at different levels in the atmosphere.
The most common colour seen in the Northern Lights is green. The red light we sometimes see is also caused by oxygen atoms. These particles are higher up in the atmosphere and are subject to a lower energy red light emission.
The particles from the solar wind must hit nitrogen atoms a lot harder in order to excite them. Once the nitrogen atoms begin to decay, they emit a purple coloured light. This is quite a rare colour to see, and usually only happens during a particularly active display. For the best chance of seeing the lights, you need to be under or close to one of the auroral ovals.
As we sail towards the Arctic Circle, your chance of seeing the Northern Lights improves, but there are a lot of factors to consider when hunting the lights. Read our Northern Lights FAQ and learn how you can increase your chances of catching a glimpse of this awe-inspiring light show in the sky. Auroras occur on other planets, too — all that's required to make an aurora is an atmosphere and a magnetic field.
Seeing the northern lights with your own eyes is a bucket-list item for astronomy lovers and travelers alike. Fortunately, they occur frequently. But that doesn't mean they're easy to spot; you need to be at the right place at the right time. That's where the aurora most frequently occurs, though the phenomenon can creep farther south during particularly strong solar storms.
Within the zone, it's best to be as far away from city lights as possible to maximize visibility. But it's pretty tricky to get into the middle of the Arctic wilderness, even with a guide, so it's best to base yourself in a destination with solid infrastructure, like Fairbanks, Alaska; Yellowknife, Canada; Svalbard, Norway; Abisko National Park, in Sweden; Rovaniemi, Finland; and pretty much anywhere in Iceland.
Related: Where to see the northern lights: aurora borealis guide. The best time of year to see the northern lights is between September and April, when the sky gets dark enough to see the aurora. Northern locales experience the midnight sun, or 24 hours of daylight in the summer.
The most action usually happens between 9 p. Keep the moon phases in mind, as a bright full moon might fill the night sky with light. Check local weather forecasts as well, because you won't be able to spot the aurora through the clouds. Join our Space Forums to keep talking space on the latest missions, night sky and more! And if you have a news tip, correction or comment, let us know at: community space.
With a background in travel and design journalism, as well as a Bachelor of Arts degree from New York University, she specializes in the budding space tourism industry and Earth-based astrotourism. Earth's magnetic field steers the charged particles towards the poles. The shape of Earth's magnetic field creates two auroral ovals above the North and South Magnetic Poles.
That is why auroras occur almost every night in the northern sky, from August to May. Our planet's magnetic field forms an invisible shield that protects us from the solar wind. From time to time, the solar wind gets stronger and penetrates Earth's magnetic field. The stream of particles interacts with gases in the magnetic field the magnetosphere , generating magnificent auroras. When solar activity decreases, the oval returns to its normal position and the auroras become less intense.
Also, because of the solar wind, sometimes the magnetic field lines reconnect on the side of Earth opposite the Sun.
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