Question

How are Aurora formed?

Answer 1

Auora is a natural phenomena. Also known as  “northern lights” .,which is  caused by collisions between fast-moving particles such as electron from space and the oxygen and nitrogen gas in our that is present in earth atmosphere. The origin of fast moving  electrons is  in the magnetosphere.Magnetosphere is the region of space which is controlled by Earth’s magnetic field. As the fast moving electon rain into the atmosphere, they impart energy to oxygen and nitrogen molecules, making them excited. When the oxygen and the nitrogen molecules return to their normal state, they release photons, small bursts of energy in the form of light..

When large numers  of these collisions occur and enough photons are released, the oxygen and nitrogen in the atmosphere emit enough light for the eye to detect them. This ghostly glow can light up the night sky in a dance of colors. But the aurora is much dimmer than sunlight, we cannot see it from the ground in the daytime.

The various color of the northern light or aurora depends on which gas is being excited by the fast moving electrons and the amount of energy is being exchanged. Oxygen emits either a greenish-yellow light (the most familiar color of the aurora) or a red light; nitrogen generally gives off a blue light.

The best places where you can see the aurora are in Alaska, Canada, and Scandinavia, during the late evening hours. Resident of the northernmost United States – near the Canadian border – typically see auroras several times a year. On rare occasions – perhaps once per decade – auroras are visible as far south as Florida or Japan.