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When Atoms Are Excited and Settle Down Again, They Glow

The Aurora Borealis or Northern Lights
The Aurora Borealis, or Northern Lights, occur when high-energy particles from the solar wind or CMEs collide with Earth’s magnetic field and penetrate the upper layers of the atmosphere (thermosphere). They are thus the result of geomagnetic storms.

The charged particles (mainly electrons and protons) from the solar wind or coronal mass ejections (CMEs) from the Sun collide with Earth’s magnetic field, which acts as a shield and directs the particles toward the magnetic poles (north and south poles). The charged particles follow the magnetic field lines, which act like a bridge guiding the particles to Earth’s magnetic poles.

Through their interaction with the magnetic field, the particles are accelerated and gain higher kinetic energies. They eventually reach the upper layers of Earth’s atmosphere, the so-called thermosphere, at altitudes between 80 and 300 km.

How is the light created?
In the atmosphere, the charged particles collide with gas atoms in molecular form, such as oxygen and nitrogen, causing the atoms to become excited.

When the charged particles collide, energy is transferred to the atoms or molecules. Electrons in the gas atoms are lifted to a higher energy level (excited state), meaning they change orbitals.

After a short time, the electron falls back to its original, lower-energy state (ground state), back into its original orbital.

In this process, the excess energy is emitted as light, or photons—a process known as luminescence. The energy of the emitted photon corresponds to the difference between the energy levels of the excited and ground states of the atom, which is influenced by the altitude and type of atom.

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