Wednesday, January 29, 2020

Another new kind of aurora


Not long ago (like last year, I think), aurora watchers discovered a new kind of aurora, which was given the name Steve.  Subsequently it turned out that it really isn't an aurora, but it's still named Steve.

But now there is a new kind of aurora:  the "green dunes".

Glowing green 'dunes' in the sky mesmerized skygazers. They turned out to be a new kind of aurora.

This article includes a fun video to watch.

Here's what one astronomer thinks about it.
"This is a very interesting observation," said Steven Miller, the deputy director of the Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere at Colorado State University, who was not a part of the study. "My first reaction when seeing the pictures were that those might be atmospheric gravity waves that are being 'highlighted' by the auroral activity — it appears that this is the hypothesis of the authors as well."


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