You never forget your first aurora; it’s an awe-inspiring experience! But not everyone who loves the aurora gets to see it often. One reason collaborations between aurora scientists and aurora chasers are so strong is that each brings different knowledge to the study of the northern and southern lights. Many aurora scientists have not had… Read More »A space weather analyst falls in love with the aurora all over again
A question we often get is “does the aurora make sound?” Observers sometimes note a crackling, rustling, whooshing, or similar noise when they watch aurora, but there has not been a lot of conclusive scientific study and anecdotal reports can be met with skepticism in the scientific community. In this blog post, we dive into… Read More »Listening for the sound of aurora—in the historical record
Since the May 10-11 aurora superstorm, a frequent question we have received is “what makes a good report? What makes a good photo?” While all reports are amazing, the answer may surprise you! In this post we’ll walk you through things to include, go behind the scenes on how data is cleaned for scientific use,… Read More »What goes into an Aurorasaurus report, and what can we learn together?
We’re still glowing over May’s auroras, and are excited to welcome those around the world who have newly fallen in love with the Northern and Southern Lights! One of the questions we have been receiving is, “where can I learn more?” Bibliophiles, we’ve got your back. In 2022, we wrote a post about some aurora… Read More »Cozy Aurora Reads
We often talk about the altitudes of aurora colors, but it can feel difficult to get a sense for just how high up the Northern and Southern Lights shine. Sometimes they seem to glow at vast distances high up in the sky, and sometimes they feel close, almost within reach. While we discuss auroral altitudes… Read More »HelioCrafts: Aurora Altitudes Hat
Note: This blog post contains and links to eclipse imagery. The April 8, 2024 eclipse was an amazing experience for millions, and inspired more than 36,000 people to #DoNASAScience! While the solar eclipse is now over, eclipse participatory science projects are going strong. In addition, the Heliophysics Big Year—a global celebration of solar science and… Read More »Helio Big Year: More Ways to Celebrate!
Note: this post contains discussion and imagery of solar eclipses. Few things are as awe-inspiring as the aurora or a solar eclipse. In just a few weeks, a total solar eclipse will cross North America, and provide a rare opportunity to connect with the natural world. In this post, we consider awe and hope to… Read More »Standing in awe of the universe
With special thanks to Dr. Janet Kozyra for her generous contributions to this post. After a big storm sends aurora to lower latitudes—southward in the Northern Hemisphere, and northward in the Southern Hemisphere—questions abound. One of the most common is “I thought the aurora was green. Why does it look red?” Red auroras have been… Read More »Why do auroras at lower latitudes look red?
As loved ones gathered to celebrate the winter holidays, we were thinking about the many relationships between aurora and aurora-like phenomena in the sky. In this post, we introduce the aurora and some of the amazing phenomena related to it, closely or distantly. If you have a photo and wonder which phenomena might be present… Read More »An Aurora Family Reunion
Guest post by Francesca Di Mare Plane travelers often hope for smooth flights without bumpy turbulence. Turbulence is a kind of chaotic motion in the flow of fluids that is constantly changing in characteristics like speed, energy, temperature, and more. It is full of different-sized swirls that mix things together and dissipate, or spread out,… Read More »Turbulence is everywhere – even in space!