The Northern Lights is one of those natural light shows that is surely on the bucket list of a large portion of the world’s population.light show in the sky oxygen and nitrogen At different altitudes and states, they are primarily responsible for turning the sky into wonderful shades of green, yellow, purple and blue in a real dance.Northern lights typical of the region closest to the polishbut what if we told you we’ve seen them in Spain too?
Yes, you read that right. The Northern Lights have also recently illuminated parts of Spain’s skies in early November.Northern lights seen Extremadura and other areas of Central Europe. We tell you why this phenomenon occurred in Spain and whether it will happen again in our country.
What are the Northern Lights and why do they form?
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The Northern Lights are a true cosmic ballet and light show depicting night sky Comes in dazzling colors. But why and how do these aurora form?
These are still luminous phenomena that occur in the polar regions, especially in the Northern Hemisphere.These impressive light shows in the sky are due to the interaction between charged particles from the sun and gases in Earth’s atmosphere.
The formation of the Northern Lights is related to the solar wind, which is a continuous flow of charged particles, mainly electrons and protons, they are expelled into space by the sun. When these charged particles reach the Earth’s atmosphere, they interact with the atoms and molecules present in the atmosphere, particularly oxygen and nitrogen.
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During these interactions, electrons from the solar wind can transfer energy to atoms and molecules in the atmosphere. When the excited electron returns to its original state, They release absorbed energy in the form of light. This light is what we perceive as the Northern Lights.
The color of the Northern Lights changes depending on the type of gas and the height at which the interaction occurs.High altitudes tend to produce oxygen red light and green lightwhile nitrogen can contribute to the tone violet and pink.
The Northern Lights are more common in areas near the poles because the Earth’s magnetic field concentrates charged particles into these areas.A common phenomenon during High solar activitywhen the sun emits more charged particles.
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Northern Lights in Spain: when and where to see them
Last night, November 6th, especially around 10:00 pm, Extremadura Cáceres Region, several copper-red flashes of light could be seen in the sky.An aurora borealis that is much farther away than normal in these polar regions and can also be seen in other areas, e.g. Italy, France, Ireland or Poland. But why are they so far from their natural habitat?
To explain this phenomenon, it is necessary to understand the process and how the Northern Lights are produced, which we mentioned earlier. solar storm or magnetic storm They are the main cause of the Northern Lights.
The Earth’s magnetic field acts like a magnet, causing those charged particles approaching the Earth to become trapped in the outermost layers of the atmosphere, which is what’s commonly seen Attracted to polarity. When nitrogen and oxygen molecules present in the atmosphere interact with these particles, they gain greater energy and become excited.
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After a few seconds, the molecules return to their original levels, lose the energy they gained, and are ejected as photons or luminescent particles.This can usually be seen in the areas closest to the poles, precisely because the magnetic field Interacting with the solar wind It tends to be attracted to these two areas of the earth.
Why can you see the Northern Lights in Spain?
But why can they meet in Spain?The explanation for this can be found in Large solar storms called severe geomagnetic storms That happened that weekend.During these storms on the Sun, strong magnetic reconnection processes occur, causing more particles Be liberated from the ordinary.
everything is unique Dense solar wind This means that these charged particles are not only transported to the polar regions, but are able to remain in other, less common areas of the atmosphere.
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Are these solar storms dangerous?
The reality is that this is a fairly common situation, and the sun’s activity changes over time. no need to worry. We are currently in a solar cycle that will peak in 2025, so the solar wind can It’s more intense now.
In fact, we are likely to continue to witness similar phenomena over the next two years as this particular solar cycle comes to an end.This means we are in one of the phases of the solar cycle Solar activity is at its highest, which is completely normal given the cyclical nature of the sun’s behavior.