Rare Aurora Display Dazzles Southern California Skies
A stunning display of the Northern Lights, typically visible only in far northern latitudes, captivated observers across Southern California Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning.The rare event, triggered by a powerful geomagnetic storm, painted the skies with vibrant hues of green, pink, and purple, prompting widespread awe and countless photographs shared across social media.
While the peak of the aurora occurred on Tuesday, the resulting geomagnetic disturbance extended its reach further south than usual, offering a remarkable viewing chance for millions who rarely, if ever, witness this natural phenomenon.The lights are now receding northward as the storm weakens, but the event underscores the dynamic connection between space weather and Earth’s atmosphere.
According too the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the aurora is created when electrons from space collide with atoms and molecules in Earth’s upper atmosphere. These collisions produce light, similar to how electrons flowing through a neon light create diffrent colors. The phenomenon occurs in a ring or oval shape centered around Earth’s magnetic poles.
“The collisions produce light much like how electrons flowing through gas in a neon light collide with neon and other gases to produce different colored light bulbs,” NOAA explained.
More data about this week’s aurora display can be found on the NOAA website: https://www.noaa.gov/education/resource-collections/weather-atmosphere/auroras.
