APOD: Eagle Aurora over Norway (2016 Oct 23)

[APOD Robot]

Eagle Aurora over Norway

Explanation: What's that in the sky? An aurora. A large coronal mass ejection occurred on our Sun five days before this 2012 image was taken, throwing a cloud of fast moving electrons, protons, and ions toward the Earth. Although most of this cloud passed above the Earth, some of it impacted our Earth's magnetosphere and resulted in spectacular auroras being seen at high northern latitudes. Featured here is a particularly photogenic auroral corona captured above Grotfjord, Norway. To some, this shimmering green glow of recombining atmospheric oxygen might appear as a large eagle, but feel free to share what it looks like to you. Although now past Solar Maximum, our Sun continues to show occasional activity creating impressive auroras on Earth visible only last week.

<< Previous APOD

This Day in APOD

Next APOD >>

[/b]

[cheggers]

It's the visage of old dapper dead Cthulhu.

[Stevie]

A lenticular cloud over a mountaintop

If you stand beneath an aurora that is directly overhead, like in the photo, does it mean all the electrons are coming down on you? Is it equivalent to radiation exposure?

[BillBixby]

It was beautiful then, it is beautiful now. This is one of the first pictures I shared with friends to show what APOD is. I also love the angel. But the views are really whatever we see. Thank you APOD for finding me and allowing me to share you. Thank you to the core persons for putting up with me and my comments.

[Chris Peterson]

A lenticular cloud over a mountaintop

If you stand beneath an aurora that is directly overhead, like in the photo, does it mean all the electrons are coming down on you? Is it equivalent to radiation exposure?

Well, you might be in the path of the charged particles. But all that light is the energy being dissipated 100 km overhead. The particles aren't reaching the ground.

[Saeed Khan]

Niagara Falls.

[heehaw]

[... The particles aren't reaching the ground.

Whereas when Elon Musk et al are living on Mars, the particles WILL be reaching the ground. Nasty.

[ta152h0]

Tadpole nebula Jr

[Chris Peterson]

[... The particles aren't reaching the ground.

Whereas when Elon Musk et al are living on Mars, the particles WILL be reaching the ground. Nasty.

Well, the ground on Mars is itself quite inhospitable and nasty. Not like you can survive there without very good shelter. Underground makes the most sense, and that means good shielding. Not a lot to do on the surface for extended periods, either, even with a suit.

[Roula]

It looks like a phoenix to us.

[Maoz]

This looks the guardian of earth, looking toward the out of sky under his green cape and robe, his head equally in a cap that goes along with the robe and he is holding a sword in his left hand, his arm, hidden by the cloth seems like he dash toward in a effort to protect us. I also imagine the wings like he was an angel that comes out from his shoulder.