WHALES & WARRIORS

Thanks to decades of research we know today that the auroras (commonly known as the northern/southern lights) occur when high-speed solar winds interact with atoms in the polar regions of the Earth’s atmosphere. Our Sun is a roiling ball of nuclear energy, continuously emitting vast jets of solar wind into space – a minor star with a major flatulence problem.

Happily, Earth’s magnetic field deflects most of this wind but some enters the atmosphere around our planet’s poles (where the magnetic field is weaker). The protons and electrons within the wind interact with the atoms in our atmosphere. That process releases energy and creates the swirling waves of light.