ATLANTA – For the second time this year, the Northern Lights were visible in the skies over North Georgia last night.

This rare sighting in the region was due to a G4 geomagnetic storm that reached Earth and was triggered by a coronal mass ejection from the Sun a few days ago. When the energy from such events interacts with the Earth’s magnetic field, it can disrupt the field and create conditions that allow auroras to be seen at lower latitudes.

The Northern Lights, or Aurora Borealis, are a natural light display seen primarily in high latitude regions near the Arctic and Antarctic. These stunning, colorful lights appear in the sky when charged particles from the sun collide with Earth’s atmosphere. The phenomenon is caused by interactions between the solar wind – a stream of charged particles emitted by the Sun – and the Earth’s magnetic field.

When these particles enter Earth’s atmosphere, they collide with gases such as oxygen and nitrogen, which then emit light. The colors of the aurora vary depending on the type of gas involved and the height of the collision:

• Green is the most common and is caused by oxygen atoms about 60 miles above Earth.
• Red auroras occur at higher altitudes and are also due to oxygen.
• Blue and purple hues are the result of nitrogen collisions.

The lights often appear as shimmering curtains, arches, or rays that dance across the night sky in dynamic, ever-changing patterns. While they are most commonly observed near the magnetic poles, strong solar storms can cause auroras to be visible much further away.