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Period: to
Timespan of Aurora borealis
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Important information of the aurora borealis
Edward Milne and Eugene Parker developed an understanding of the solar wind. Which is a stream of charged particles flowing outward from the Sun and through the solar system in all directions. the charged particles are blocked by the Earth's magnetic field. When the solar winds are extremely active, the magnetic field cannot hold back all of he particles and they leak through causing aurorae.
"Aurora." World of Scientific Discovery. Gale, 2007. Science in Context. Web. 30 Dec. 2013. -
Rockets sent into the northern lights
Rocket probes sent to aurora borealis. Helps understand the electric and magnetic properties of plasmas. -
Reason for the aurora
Aurora's are now said to be caused by charged paticles from the sun that get caught in the magnetic field from earth. The colors are caused by large amounts of electricity in the atmosphere. -
Data shown to be wrong
observations for the past 200 years have been said to be wrong. The frequency of aurorae is connected to the electrical conductivity of the upper atmosphere. -
Solar flare caused massive amounts of Aurorae
A huge solar flare caused bright northern lights. "The magnetic field protects the planet from most such particles, but in a strong burst like this, some disruptions can occur. As the field deflects the particles they are moved toward the north and south poles, where they cause the northern and southern lights, called auroras." "Solar flare threatens the Earth with a storm." New York Times 16 July 2000: 21. Science in Context. Web. 20 Dec. 2013. -
Aurora Borealis was lighting the sky as far south as Texas
Austen, Ian. "We put a man on the Moon, but try finding Orion's belt." New York Times 8 Nov. 2001: G3. Science in Context. Web. 20 Dec. 2013. -
The northern lights history
"the northern lights have inspired a variety of lore and myths to explain their existence throughout the world's northern regions over the last 1,000 years. Depending on the culture, people either admired or feared the lights. Many of the beliefs took on a religious or spiritual connotation." Krasner-Khait, Barbara. "Drawn to the lights: the myths and legends of ancient cultures." Odyssey Apr. 2003: 18+. Science in Context. Web. 20 Dec. 2013. -
Definition of aurora
The defintion of aurora is: a bright, colorful display of light in the night sky, produced when charged particles from the Sun enter Earth's atmosphere. "Optical Effects." UXL Encyclopedia of Weather and Natural Disasters. Detroit: UXL, 2007. Science in Context. Web. 30 Dec. 2013.
