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Credit & Copyright: ÷orvarÏur àrnason
Explanation:
If you see a sky like this -- photograph it.
A month ago in Iceland, an adventurous photographer (pictured) chanced across a
sky full of aurora and did just that.
In the foreground lies the stratovolcano
ærÔfajÆkull.
In the background, among other sky delights, lies the constellation of
Orion, visible to the aurora's left.
Auroras
are sparked by
energetic particles from the
Sun impacting the
magnetic environment
around the Earth.
Resultant energetic particles such as
electrons and
protons
rain down near the Earth's poles and impact the air.
The impacted
air molecules obtain
excited electrons, and when electrons in
oxygen molecules fall back to their ground state,
they emit green light.
Auroras
are known to have many
shapes and
colors.
Click Hyperspace:
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: aurora - volcano - iceland
Publications with words: aurora - volcano - iceland
See also: