A dazzling spectacle appeared in the eyes of the French who were outside on the night of Sunday to Monday February 27. Aurora borealis have indeed been observed in Pas-de-Calais, Poitou, or even in Burgundy. Many people have taken the time to share their images with netizens, reports The Huffington Post.
Billions of collisions
The auroras are a colorful light phenomenon that is linked to the activity of the Sun. These are billions of tiny bursts of light produced when electrons and protons from the solar winds collide with gases in Earth’s upper atmosphere. They are most often visible at the level of the two magnetic poles of the Earth, since it is at these places that the magnetic fields come to guide the charged particles. At the North Pole, we speak of the aurora borealis, and at the South Pole of aurora australis.
But, in certain situations, it is also possible to see beyond the two poles. The recent aurora borealis appeared due to the intensity of the Sun’s activity in recent days and a “coronal mass ejection” (CME), which reached Earth on Sunday evening. The latter phenomenon can cause the aurora borealis to appear at lower latitudes.
Next dawns in France?
In fact, according to the MET Office, these low-latitude aurora borealis, however, remain much more visible in the United Kingdom, especially throughout the northern part of the country. The most impressive images of the last aurora come from elsewhere in these regions.
If the weather continues to be clear, the UK should once again enjoy local Northern Lights tonight. Their visibility from France is not guaranteed. In any case, the activity of the Sun will continue to intensify until it reaches a peak in 2025, which should give new opportunities to observe the aurora borealis from France.