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Credit & Copyright: Lorenzo Cordero
Explanation:
Did you see an aurora over the past two nights?
Many people who don't live in Earth's far north did.
Reports of aurora came in not only from northern locales in the
USA as
Alaska, but as far south as
Texas and
Arizona.
A huge auroral oval extended over
Europe and
Asia, too.
Pictured, an impressively
red aurora was captured last night near the town of
Cöceres in central
Spain.
Auroras were also reported in
parts of southern Spain.
The auroras resulted from a strong
Coronal Mass Event (CME) that occurred on the Sun a few days ago.
Particles from the CME crossed the inner
Solar System before colliding with the Earth's
magnetosphere.
From there,
electrons and
protons spiraled down the
Earth's northern magnetic field lines and collided with
oxygen and nitrogen in
Earth's atmosphere, causing
picturesque auroral
glows.
Our unusually active Sun may provide future
opportunities to see the
northern lights in
southern skies.
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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 borealis
Publications with words: aurora borealis
See also: