Aurora
In short
An aurora is a natural light display in the Earth's upper atmosphere caused by charged particles from the Sun hitting atmospheric gases.
In plain words
Tiny pieces of energy from the Sun crash into the air around our planet. This creates beautiful, glowing colours like green, red, and purple in the night sky.
A simple example
If you are standing in northern Norway on a clear night, you might see wavy curtains of green light dancing above you.
Why it matters
It shows how the Sun's energy interacts with our planet's magnetic field. These displays help scientists study space weather and solar activity.
Easy to mix up
Do not confuse an aurora with a meteor, which is a single streak of light caused by a space rock burning up.