People around Australia were lucky to catch the southern lights in their maximum stage on Monday night
A photo of the aurora australis lighting up the night sky in Bancoora beach in Victoria, Australia, on 5 November.A photo of the aurora australis lighting up the night sky in Bancoora beach in Victoria, Australia, on 5 November.Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup
A geomagnetic storm on the sun had sent particles streaming towards Earth, where they hit the atmosphere and caused the luminous display. Auroras are more commonly seen at the north and south poles, but a fierce eruption from the sun’s surface can drive the spectacular phenomenon closer to the equator.
Those awake and looking south are in for a beautiful view! Aurora Australis are visible across parts of Victoria tonight due to enhanced Solar Activity. The current view from Ballarat Airport.Dr Brad Tucker, an astrophysicist at Australian National University, said the bigger the storm, the more energy is released, and the more visible the aurora becomes.
“You have some sort of eruption – a coronal mass ejection – where the sun ejects its plasma stuff and it travels into space,” he said.“The electromagnetically charged plasma slams into the Earth’s atmosphere it excites the gas in our own atmosphere, kind of like a neon sign. You get a gas and put a charge through it and it causes the electronics to glow.“Geomagnetic storm in progress. Aurora may be observed during local night-time hours in good observing conditions at high latitudes,” it said.
“So that’s why people are seeing it quite a lot this year, we’re in the solar maxima, and it’ll last for another year or two, so you can expect more of them to come to Australia,” he said.“Our equipment from the last maxima, is a lot better, a lot more accessible,” he said.“It is visible to the naked eye. But more vivid colours, definitely that is a factor as well, people are noticing it on social media, they’re joining aurora groups.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Australia’s freight future takes shape at $4b, 243-hectare hub at Moordbank, western SydneyThe vast industrial estate will benefit from investment into a national rail freight network that will transform the way goods are moved along the east coast.
Read more »
Australia investing: Where to look for opportunities in Australia’s macro-outperformanceEven with its latest downgrade, the IMF expects our growth to average 2 per cent over the next five years, toward the top end of developed market peers.
Read more »