New Explanation for Northern Lights

Today in The Christian Science Monitor news, Scientists announced that they may have found the answer to the longstanding mystery about the origin of the energetic particles that cause of Earth's dramatic aurora displays knew as the Northern lights. The more scientists’ studies and dig deeper into the scientific explanations on the matter, the closer scientists can explain how the electrons in the earth's upper atmosphere can generate spectacular auroras also known as the northern and southern lights.

The researchers determined that these electrons are likely being rocketed  or accelerated to incredible speeds or tremendous speeds in the magnetotail, a portion of Earth's protective magnetosphere that has been pushed far into space by the solar wind creating the beautiful glow in Earth's upper atmosphere. Impacting the phenomenon that know as the northern and southern lights.

According to a new study: 

The electrons responsible for the auroras — also known as the northern and southern lights — are likely accelerated to incredible speeds in an active region of Earth's magnetosphere, according to a new study. This region is 1,000 times larger than scientists had thought possible, providing enough volume to generate lots of the fast-moving electrons, the study reports.

The researchers determined that these electrons are likely being rocketed to their tremendous speeds in the magnetotail, a portion of Earth's protective magnetosphere that has been pushed far into space by the solar wind.

As the solar wind — the million-mph stream of charged particles coming from the sun — stretches Earth's magnetic-field lines, the field stores energy like a rubber band being stretched, Egedal said. When the normally parallel field lines reconnect, that energy is released like a rubber band being snapped, and electrons are propelled back toward our planet at fantastic speeds.

When these fast-moving electrons hit molecules in Earth's upper atmosphere, the impact generates the phenomenon that we know as the northern and southern lights. [Photos: Dazzling Northern Lights of February 2012]

Some physicists had viewed this origin story for the aurora-causing electrons as improbable, because they didn't think the active magnetotail region was big enough to generate the huge numbers of electrons that slam into Earth's atmosphere.

 Here are dazzling Northern Lights of February 2012

 Credit: Auroramax

 Aurora Borealis above Yellowknife, NWT

Credit: Shawn Malone

  Aurora over Lake Superior with Couple 

  Credit: Shawn Malone

Aurora over Marquette County, Upper Peninsula of Michigan

Credit: Donald Hampton

 NASA Launches Rocket Into Aurora

 The study is detailed in the Feb. 26 edition of the Journal Nature Physics.

 [via  http://www.csmonitor.com]