It is said that red lights were visible in England weeks before the French Revolution and after were thought to have been a sign of the coming troubles. Medieval times, auroral displays in Europe were seen as harbingers of war or famine. They also appear in Norse mythology where they were thought to be reflections from the shields and armor of the Valkyrie or a glowing arch which led those who had fallen in battle to their final resting place in Valhalla. China and it’s thought that early Chinese legends which feature dragons are a result of sightings of the lights. The oldest known auroral citing in literature was in 2600 B.C. Lots of myths and legends exist originating from different indigenous people situated with the Auroral Oval and further afield. Unsurprisingly given how unexplainable they must have seemed, ever since Prehistoric times people have been fascinated by Aurora Borealis. What are common myths and legends of the northern lights? Scientists think that often the lights visible on each side of the world are mirror-like images – showing similar shapes and colours and appearing at the same time. ![]() Whilst the lights which can be seen in the Northern hemisphere are known as Aurora Borealis, those visible in the Southern hemisphere are called Aurora Australis. The lights appear in an area which forms an irregularly shaped oval centred over each magnetic pole. Pale green and pink are the most common colours although many other shades have been reported. The variations in colour are the result of different types of gas particles. These collisions emit what we see as patterns of coloured light. ![]() These charged particles are mostly deflected by the Earth’s magnetic field, however this is weaker at either pole and therefore some particles are able to enter the atmosphere and collide with gas particles. ![]() They are then blown towards the Earth by solar wind. Free electrons and protons are thrown from the Sun’s atmosphere by its rotation and escape through holes in the magnetic field. As the temperature above the surface of the Sun is millions of degrees Celsius, this causes frequent and explosive collisions between gas molecules.
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