Physics Photo of the Week - November 8, 2024
Physics Photo of the Week - November 8, 2024 Aurora from Swannanoa On May 10, 2024, much of North America experienced a "solar storm" that produced aurora as far south of the Carolinas. Aurora (northern lights) are usually confined to the Earth's polar regions (northern Canada, Alaska, Norway, Sweeden, Russia, ...). The aurora are produced by charged particles (electrons and protons) that are emitted by the Sun ( solar wind ) which are guided by magnetic fields in the solar system. The Sun had emitted a massive amount of high energy electrons and protons a couple of days earlier - called a " Coronal mass ejection ". When these particles reach the Earth, t hey strike the atoms and molecules in the Earth's upper atmosphere and cause the atmosphere to glow. This is analogous to the glow on an old-fashioned TV picture tube when electrons strike the coating on the inside of the tube. With a coronal mass ejection, the number of charged particles ejected