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Credit & Copyright: Göran Strand
Explanation:
It was bright and green and stretched across the sky.
This striking aurora display was captured in 2016 just outside of
östersund,
Sweden.
Six photographic fields were merged to create the
featured panorama spanning almost 180 degrees.
Particularly striking aspects of this
aurora
include its sweeping arc-like shape and its stark definition.
Lake
Storsjön
is seen in the foreground, while several familiar constellations and the star
Polaris are visible through the aurora,
far in the background.
Coincidently, the
aurora
appears to
avoid the Moon visible on the lower left.
The aurora appeared a
day after a
large hole
opened in the Sun's corona,
allowing particularly energetic particles to flow out into the
Solar System.
The green color of the aurora is caused by
oxygen
atoms recombining with ambient
electrons
high in the
Earth's atmosphere.
Your Sky Surprise:
What picture did APOD feature on your birthday? (post 1995)
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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: