Scientists measure how the aurora affects winds in the upper atmosphere.
aurorae
Posted inEditors' Highlights
New Insight into Ionospheric Feedback Instability
A new modeling effort could change our understanding of auroral arc formation.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Can Large Electric Fields Power Jupiter’s X-ray Auroras?
Electric fields with megavolt potentials in Jupiter’s polar region accelerate particles to 100 times more energy than Earth’s typical auroral particles, a new study finds.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Juno Gets Spectacular View of Jupiter’s Aurora
The NASA spacecraft has taken images of Jupiter’s powerful aurora dancing around its poles, revealing never-before-seen details in their structure.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Simulations Give New View of Global Auroral Storms
New computer models capture the movement of the strongest auroral storms as they sweep across Earth at night, challenging scientists’ views of what drives them.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Auroras May Explain an Anomaly in Earth’s Ionosphere
A new study finds that the ionospheric anomaly over the Weddell Sea is likely influenced by proximity to auroral energy input, rather than by tilting magnetic fields.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Hubble Reveals Less Studied Regions of Jupiter’s Auroras
With a dose of fiery plasma, the secondary arcs of Jupiter’s aurora shine bright.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Testing Models of Near-Space Electrical Currents
Modeling Earth’s near-space environment and its electrical currents is challenging. A new study compares how four different models stack up against observations.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Mysterious Particle Beams Found over Jupiter’s Poles
The unexpected character of the beams, revealed by NASA’s Juno spacecraft, suggests that the processes that produce Jupiter’s auroras are unlike those on Earth.
Posted inNews
David S. Evans (1936–2016)
Evans, a pioneer of auroral physics, changed the way scientists thought about the aurora and magnetic fields and guided a new generation of researchers.