Where/ when would be a good place and time to see the aurora?|||The aurora are only visible at high latitudes because that is where the Earth's magnetic field is the strongest, and also where it is most perpendicular to the surface of the Earth.
The aurora tend to be most intense during times of high solar activity. Solar activity waxes and wanes on a roughly eleven year cycle. The last maximum of solar activity was around the year 2000, so the next peak will be sometime around the year 2011. That will be the best time to try and see the aurora.
During times of extremely high solar activity, the (northern) aurora can be seen as far south as the northern US, though they will be more brilliant further north.|||The aurora are most visible in the higher latitudes of both the northern and southern hemisphere. This is where the magnetic poles of the earth lay, the magnetic field is perpendicular to earth surface which directs the charged particles from the sun into the earth's atmosphere. These particles ionized the atmosphere and give the aurora its colors. When the sun is most active i.e. has the most sunspots is when the auroras occur most.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment