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Credit & Copyright: Göran Strand
Explanation:
Illuminated by an eerie greenish light, this
remarkable little planet is covered with ice and snow
and ringed by tall pine trees.
Of course,
this little planet is actually planet Earth,
and the surrounding stars are above
the horizon
near Östersund, Sweden.
The pale greenish illumination is from a curtain of
shimmering Aurora Borealis
also known as the Northern Lights.
The display was triggered when a giant solar
coronal mass ejection (CME) rocked
planet Earth's
magnetosphere on January 24th
and produced a strong geomagnetic storm.
Northern hemisphere skygazers will also recognize
the familiar orientation
of stars at the left, including the Pleiades and Hyades star clusters
and the stars of Orion.
Increasing solar activity has caused
recent auroral displays to be wide spread, including
Aurora Australis, the Southern
Lights, at high southern latitudes.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: aurora
Publications with words: aurora
See also:
- APOD: 2025 January 7 Á A New Years Aurora and SAR Arc
- APOD: 2024 December 8 Á Aurora around Saturns North Pole
- APOD: 2024 October 16 Á Colorful Aurora over New Zealand
- APOD: 2024 October 13 Á Aurora Timelapse Over Italian Alps
- Northern Lights, West Virginia
- Aurora Australis and the International Space Station
- APOD: 2024 June 26 Á Timelapse: Aurora, SAR, and the Milky Way