Aurora

Extracted Attributes

• Role

  Key player in autonomous vehicles

• Industry

  Autonomous Vehicle Technology

Aurora

An aurora (pl. aurorae or auroras) is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly observed in high-latitude regions around the Arctic and Antarctic. The terms northern lights (aurora borealis) and southern lights (aurora australis) are used in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres respectively. Auroras display dynamic patterns of radiant light that appear as curtains, rays, spirals or dynamic flickers covering the entire sky. Auroras are the result of disturbances in the Earth's magnetosphere caused by enhanced speeds of solar wind from coronal holes and coronal mass ejections. These disturbances alter the trajectories of charged particles in the magnetospheric plasma. These particles, mainly electrons and protons, precipitate into the upper atmosphere (thermosphere/exosphere). The resulting ionization and excitation of atmospheric constituents emit light of varying color and complexity. The form of the aurora, occurring within bands around both polar regions, is also dependent on the amount of acceleration imparted to the precipitating particles. Other planets in the Solar System, brown dwarfs, comets, and some natural satellites also host auroras.

Web Search Results

• AURORA Definition & Meaning | Dictionary.com

  What is an aurora?An aurora is a natural light display in the sky that is caused by particles from the sun interacting with a planet’s magnetic field.The most well-known aurora is the aurora borealis, the shimmering display of colorful lights that sometimes appears in Earth’s Northern Hemisphere. The phenomenon is also commonly called the northern lights. The aurora that occurs in the Southern Hemisphere is called aurora australis or the southern lights. (The word borealis is Latin for boreal, [...] 1. A brilliant display of bands or folds of variously colored light in the sky at night, especially in polar regions. Charged particles from the solar wind are channeled through the Earth's magnetic field into the polar regions. There the particles collide with atoms and molecules in the upper atmosphere, ionizing them and making them glow. Auroras are of greatest intensity and extent during periods of increased sunspot activity, when they often interfere with telecommunications on Earth. [...] 1. the ancient Roman goddess of the dawn. 2. (lowercase), dawn. 3. (lowercase), a radiant emission from the upper atmosphere that occurs sporadically over the middle and high latitudes of both hemispheres in the form of luminous bands, streamers, or the like, caused by the bombardment of the atmosphere with charged solar particles that are being guided along the earth's magnetic lines of force. 4. a city in central Colorado, near Denver. 5. a city in northeastern Illinois. 6. a first name.

• Aurora Forecast | Geophysical Institute

  : The aurora is a luminous glow frequently seen around the geomagnetic poles of the northern (aurora borealis) and southern (aurora australis) hemispheres. The light is caused by collisions between electrically charged particles streaming from outer space that enter Earth’s atmosphere and collide with molecules and atoms of gas (primarily oxygen and nitrogen). When the electrons and protons from the sun collide with gases in the Earth’s atmosphere, the atmospheric particles (or gases) gain [...] The aurora may appear as rays shooting out in all directions from a single point in the sky. This dramatic form occurs when you are directly beneath the swirls and folds of an active curtain. The rays are actually hundreds of miles long and perspective makes them appear to converge. [...] : The composition and density of the atmosphere and the altitude of the collisions determine the colors. The aurora is most often seen as a striking green, but it also occasionally shows off other colors, ranging from red to pink or blue to purple. Oxygen at about 60 miles up gives off the familiar green-yellow color, while oxygen at higher altitudes (about 200 miles above Earth’s surface) gives all-red auroras. Nitrogen in different forms produces the blue light. Purple occurs when nitrogen

• Aurora - 30 Minute Forecast - Space Weather Prediction Center

  The aurora is an indicator of the current geomagnetic storm conditions and provides situational awareness for a number of technologies. The aurora directly impacts HF radio communication and GPS/GNSS satellite navigation. It is closely related to the ground-induced currents that impact electric power transmission. [...] For many people, the aurora is a beautiful nighttime phenomenon that is worth traveling to arctic regions just to observe. It is the only way for most people to actually experience space weather. These links provide a discussion of the aurora phenomena and tips for the best opportunities to view aurora at various locations around the world. Space Weather and GPS Systems Electric Power Transmission HF Radio Communications [...] The two maps show the North and South poles of Earth respectively. The brightness and location of the aurora is typically shown as a green oval centered on Earth’s magnetic pole. The green ovals turn red when the aurora is forecasted to be more intense. The sunlit side of Earth is indicated by the lighter blue of the ocean and the lighter color of the continents. Aurora can often be observed somewhere on Earth from just after sunset or just before sunrise. The aurora is not visible during

• Aurora - Wikipedia

  Auroras result from emissions of photons in Earth's upper atmosphere, above 80 km (50 mi), from ionized nitrogen atoms regaining an electron, and oxygen atoms and nitrogen-based molecules returning from an excited state to the ground state. They are ionized or excited by the collision of particles precipitated into the atmosphere. Both incoming electrons and protons may be involved. Excitation energy is lost within the atmosphere by the emission of a photon, or by collision with another atom or [...] Auroras are most commonly observed in the "auroral zone", a band approximately 6° (~660 km) wide in latitude centered on 67° north and south. The region that currently displays an aurora is called the "auroral oval". The oval is displaced by the solar wind, pushing it about 15° away from the geomagnetic pole (not the geographic pole) in the noon direction and 23° away in the midnight direction. The peak equatorward extent of the oval is displaced slightly from geographic midnight. It is [...] The word aurora is derived from the name of the Roman goddess of the dawn, Aurora "Aurora (mythology)"), who travelled from east to west announcing the coming of the Sun. Aurora was first used in English in the 14th century. The words borealis and australis are derived from the names of the ancient gods of the north wind (Boreas "Boreas (god)")) and the south wind (Auster or australis "Anemoi")) in Greco-Roman mythology. ## Occurrence

• Aurora - Definition, Meaning & Synonyms - Vocabulary.com

  SKIP TO CONTENT IPA guide Other forms: auroras; aurorae An aurora consists of bands of light in the sky along the north and south poles. An aurora is a beautiful astronomical light show. [...] an atmospheric phenomenon consisting of bands of light caused by charged solar particles following the earth's magnetic lines of force see moresee less types: aurora australis, southern lights the aurora of the southern hemisphere aurora borealis, northern lights the aurora of the northern hemisphere type of: atmospheric phenomenon a physical phenomenon associated with the atmosphere 2. noun the first light of day [...] If you look up at night and see bright bands of light, it's not an invasion by aliens: it's a natural, electrical phenomenon called an aurora. An aurora can happen at either of the Earth's magnetic poles, north or south. An aurora is considered one of the most gorgeous natural occurrences, and you’re lucky if you see one. The two types of auroras are called aurora borealis and aurora australis — which mean northern lights and southern lights, respectively. Definitions of aurora 1. noun

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• Country

  United States

• Located In

  Kendall County

• Instance Of

  Q1549591

• Population

  180,542

• Coordinates

  Lat: 41.76, Lon: -88.298611111

• Inception Date

  1/1/1835

An aurora (plural: auroras or aurorae), also commonly known as the polar lights, is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly seen in high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic). Auroras display dynamic patterns of brilliant lights that appear as curtains, rays, spirals, or dynamic flickers covering the entire sky. Auroras are the result of disturbances in the magnetosphere caused by the solar wind. Major disturbances result from enhancements in the speed of the solar wind from coronal holes and coronal mass ejections. These disturbances alter the trajectories of charged particles in the magnetospheric plasma. These particles, mainly electrons and protons, precipitate into the upper atmosphere (thermosphere/exosphere). The resulting ionization and excitation of atmospheric constituents emit light of varying colour and complexity. The form of the aurora, occurring within bands around both polar regions, is also dependent on the amount of acceleration imparted to the precipitating particles. Most of the planets in the Solar System, some natural satellites, brown dwarfs, and even comets also host auroras.