Does space weather cause auroras?
Usually they are only visible in the far northern and southern polar regions. But during an extreme space weather event, the Aurora will become very intense and will be visible in places that usually never see these elusive night lights.
How are the Northern Lights related to space weather?
The Northern Lights evolve from the sun’s activity that affects the conditions in space. Space weather—caused by geoeffective solar activity such as solar flares and coronal mass ejections—can impact the space between here and the sun, causing an aurora as a byproduct.
How far in advance can aurora be predicted?
As a naturally occurring phenomenon, the appearance of the Northern Lights is notoriously difficult to predict any further in advance than about two hours before it happens.
Can you see aurora with KP 5?
If the Kp is 5 or greater, the better your chances of seeing an aurora. You can check out the SWPC Estimated Planetary Kp graph to see what has been happening during the past few days. The red bars indicate a Kp higher than 4, which makes your odds of seeing an aurora greater.
How often do the aurora happen?
“Active periods are typically about 30 minutes long and occur every two hours, if the activity is high. The aurora is a sporadic phenomenon, occurring randomly for short periods or perhaps not at all.”
How do auroras affect us?
The Northern Lights occur so high up in the atmosphere that they don’t pose any threat to people watching them from the ground. The aurora itself is not harmful to humans but the electrically charged particles produced could have some potentially negative effects to infrastructure and technology.
Why is aurora borealis only in the north?
Of the two poles, the aurora can be seen the strongest near the arctic circle in the Northern Hemisphere. The reason that the Aurora can only be seen at the poles has to do with how the Earth’s magnetic field acts. The Earth has a metal core and acts much like a bar magnet with two poles and a magnetic field.
What does KP 7 mean?
Strong storm
Kp 7 – Strong storm – Bright, dynamic and colourful aurorae. Visible in the southern sky. Aurora coronae very likely. Kp 8 – Severe storm – Bright, dynamic and colourful aurorae.
Why are Northern Lights green?
The most common color seen in the Northern Lights is green. When the solar wind hits millions of oxygen atoms in the Earth’s atmosphere at the same time, it excites the oxygen atoms for a time and they decay back to their original state, when they emit the green hue we can see from the ground.
How long does an aurora last?
Anywhere from 10 minutes to all night long, depending on the magnitude of the incoming solar wind.
What is the best country to see the northern lights?
What are the best places to see the Northern Lights?
- Tromso, Norway. Based in the heart of the aurora zone in the Norwegian Arctic, the city is widely regarded as one of the world’s best places to see the Northern Lights.
- Swedish Lapland.
- Reykjavik, Iceland.
- Yukon, Canada.
- Rovaniemi, Finnish Lapland.
- Ilulissat, Greenland.
Do you need a camera to see Northern Lights?
To begin, you’ll need a camera with a manual setting. Being able to control the various settings is essential for photographing the lights. And remember to turn on manual focus and switch off the flash.
Can you see aurora with KP 3?
The average equatorward boundary of the midnight aurora is shown for levels of magnetic activity ranging from relatively low, Kp=3, to very high, Kp=9. These maps were created using satellite observations to determine the average equatorward boundary of the aurora as a function of the Kp index**.
What is an Aurora Corona?
A third form, the corona, is seen when the aurora is directly above you, and rays seem to fall around you from the zenith of the sky. A single auroral display may incorporate a range of these forms and a variety of colors, depending on the composition of the atmosphere.