'A Whale of an Aurora over Swedish Forest' is a stunning auroral corona or corona captured by Göran Strand.
Image via➡️ https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap220322.html
When observing an aurora, one may occasionally witness the convergence of the auroral rays, creating a crown-like shape known as
🔭 🧪 #sciart 🧵
Image via➡️ https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap220322.html
When observing an aurora, one may occasionally witness the convergence of the auroral rays, creating a crown-like shape known as
🔭 🧪 #sciart 🧵
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the auroral corona.
Such convergence is an optical illusion caused by perspective effects.
This effect occurs when charged particles from the solar wind hit the Earth's atmosphere particularly strongly and aligned with the magnetic field,
creating a spectacular sight similar to a celestial crown. It is one of the rarest and most fascinating forms of aurora.
Indeed, the auroral corona is a remarkable phenomenon that showcases the beauty and power of nature.
Earlier March 2022 a great coronal mass ejection occurred on our Sun and part of a cloud of fast-moving electrons, protons and ions, thrown toward Earth, resulted in stunning aurorae like this.
The aurora's glittering green glow might recall, by pareidolia, a large whale.