Aurora Borealis Aurorae | Aurora Australis

An effect caused by the Earth’s magnetic field is the spectacular Northern and Southern Lights, which are also called the Aurora Borealis (Figure 1) and the Aurora Australis respectively (Figure 2).

When charged particles from the solar wind reach the Earth’s magnetosphere, they spiral along the magnetic field lines towards the North and South poles. If they collide with particles in the Earth’s atmosphere, they can cause red or green lights that stretch across a large part of the sky. This is called an aurora.

As this only happens close to the North and South poles people living in the high Northern latitudes in Canada, Sweden, and Finland, for example, often see the Northern lights.