Auroras: Nature's light show
Andrew Peacock/Getty
Have you ever seen an aurora? These spectacular night-time displays can fill our skies with dancing lights and bursts of color. But why do they happen in the first place?
Join Molly and co-host Mariam as they learn about what makes an aurora (hint: it starts with spicy sun burps) and chat with scientist Dr. Liz MacDonald about the best places to see them. Stick around for aurora trivia with Gameshow Molly and a dazzling new mystery sound!
Featured expert:
Dr. Liz MacDonald is a Space Physicist at Nasa’s Goddard Space Center and leads the Aurorasaurus project. Find her at NASA!
Resources:
Have you seen an aurora? Snap a picture and share it with the Aurorasaurus project.
Educators - Lesson Plan for Brains On! - Auroras: Nature's light show (Right Click to Download)
Audio Transcript
Download transcript (PDF)
MARIAM: You're listening to Brains On! where we're serious about being curious.
SUBJECT: Brains On! is supported in part by a grant from the National Science Foundation.
MOLLY BLOOM: OK, I got my water bottle, check, my headphones, check, and my purple sequined power suit to change into later, check. I am so ready for today's episode.
RUBY: Rosie, I'll say it once, and I'll say it again. You just can't argue with light up butts.
ROSIE Ruby, what about constellations? The Big Dipper. Come on.
MOLLY BLOOM: Hey, Rosie and Ruby, R squared. What's up, you two?
RUBY: Oh Molly, perfect. You got to help us settle something.
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh like, which curd of cottage cheese taste best? Because, believe me, I have both strong opinions and expertise.
ROSIE: No, let's table that for later. We're debating what nature's best light show is.
MOLLY BLOOM: Because it's definitely bioluminescent animals. You know, animals that light up like fireflies.
ROSIE: OK, that's cute. But we both know stars are nature's best light show.
MOLLY BLOOM: Stars? Stars are nothing but big balls of space gas.
ROSIE: Big balls of space gas that light up the sky.
MOLLY BLOOM: OK, both of these things are awesome, but I think nature's best light show is something else entirely.
ROSIE: Ooh, do tell.
MOLLY BLOOM: Yeah spill it, Bloom. I think nature's best light shows are auroras.
RUBY: Aur-- what now?
MOLLY BLOOM: Auroras. They are some of the most magical, awe-inspiring sights in the night sky. Lights, pulse, and swirl across the sky in all different colors, from electric green to pink to bright red.
ROSIE: Whoa, that sounds incredible.
RUBY: Yeah, I want to hear more about these auroras, too.
MOLLY BLOOM: Well, lucky for you, we're doing a whole episode on them. Cue the theme music.
[THEME MUSIC]
You're listening to Brains On! From APM Studios. I'm your host, Molly Bloom. And today, I'm with Mariam from Scottsdale, Arizona. Hi, Mariam.
MARIAM: Hi, Molly.
MOLLY BLOOM: Listeners, prepare to be dazzled because we're talking all about auroras-- the beautiful display of dancing lights we sometimes see at night.
MARIAM: If you're in the Northern hemisphere, they're also called the Northern lights or Aurora borealis.
MOLLY BLOOM: And if you're in the Southern hemisphere, they're called the Southern lights or Aurora australis.
MARIAM: Auroras are like nature's light show.
MOLLY BLOOM: They happen all year round, even during the day.
MARIAM: But it's impossible to see Auroras during the day because it's too bright.
MOLLY BLOOM: Like all good light shows, auroras are best seen at night.
MARIAM: Auroras can look like streaks of light across the sky.
MOLLY BLOOM: And they come in all sorts of colors.
MARIAM: Green.
MOLLY BLOOM: Purple.
MARIAM: Red.
MOLLY BLOOM: And pink.
MARIAM: But these colorful lights don't just stay still.
MOLLY BLOOM: They ripple and swirl.
MARIAM: They dance.
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh yeah. Aurora's totally know how to boogie.
MARIAM: A light show and a dance show. Sign me up.
MOLLY BLOOM: Aurora's really are a spectacular sight. And earlier this year, lots of us saw auroras across the globe, and you all had a ton of questions about them.
RIVERS: My name is Rivers.
COHEN: And my name is Cohen.
RIVERS: And we're from Kenneth Falls, Minnesota.
COHEN: Our question is, what are the Northern lights?
LEAH: Hello, I'm Leah. I was wondering, how auroras happen.
CLAIR: Hi, my name is Clair, and I live in Arizona. And my question is, how do the Northern lights appear?
AISYAH: Hello, my name is Aisyah. And I'm in Saudi Arabia. And my question is, why do Northern lights happen in the cold places but not in the hot places. And how do they happen.
FLETCHER: Hi, I'm Fletcher and I'm from Hampstead, North Carolina. How are Aurora borealis made?
MOLLY BLOOM: Mariam, you sent us a question about auroras, too.
MARIAM: Yeah, I wanted to know how do auroras form.
MOLLY BLOOM: So what made you curious about this?
MARIAM: I became curious about auroras when I was reading the book Golden Compass by Philip Pullman.
MOLLY BLOOM: The Golden Compass, I love that book. It has been a while since I read it, though. So can you remind me what role auroras play in it?
MARIAM: In The Golden Compass, Aurora's like a gateway into a different dimension.
MOLLY BLOOM: That is so awesome. So auroras are like a portal to other worlds?
MARIAM: Yeah, it's really cool.
MOLLY BLOOM: That is really cool. So have you gotten to see an Aurora in person?
MARIAM: No, they don't have any in Arizona, and I haven't been to any other places.
MOLLY BLOOM: Have you seen photos of them?
MARIAM: Yeah, in science class and stuff.
MOLLY BLOOM: So how would you describe it to someone who hasn't gotten to seen a picture of them?
MARIAM: It's like a big streak of different colors across the sky.
MOLLY BLOOM: And do you ever look up to the sky for other things like clouds or stars?
MARIAM: Yeah, we have this really big telescope, and you can see really far with it. And I like to look at Jupiter and its moons.
MOLLY BLOOM: So if you could go to outer space to see some of the things out there, how do you feel about that?
MARIAM: That would be cool.
MOLLY BLOOM: Where would be your first destination in outer space?
MARIAM: I would go to Mars because it's smells like Earth.
MOLLY BLOOM: Would you want to live on Mars, if you could?
MARIAM: I don't think so. I like Earth.
MOLLY BLOOM: I like the earth, too. We got good gravity. We got good sun, a nice atmosphere. It's really lovely here.
SUBJECT: Brains On!
MOLLY BLOOM: So even though we think of auroras as dazzling nighttime displays, they happen because of something much hotter and brighter-- the sun. Auroras happen when super tiny things called particles from the sun zoom through space and bump into the super tiny air particles in our atmosphere.
MARIAM: The atmosphere is the blanket of air that surrounds Earth.
MOLLY BLOOM: When those sun particles bump into air particles in Earth's atmosphere, they create a brilliant light show. But how exactly does this happen, and why? To answer those questions, let's start with our pal, the Sun.
THE SUN: Did somebody call their favorite star? It's me, the sun.
MOLLY BLOOM: The sun is made up of very, very hot electric gas particles.
THE SUN: That's right. I'm hot, gassy, and sassy. Triple threat.
MARIAM: So hot, so gassy.
MOLLY BLOOM: And the surface of the sun is so hot and so gassy that sometimes it releases some of its hot electric gas particles off into space. You can think of it like the sun is burping out these particles.
THE SUN: I did warn you, I'm gassy.
SUBJECT: See you, sun. Thanks for burping us ou. Yippee.
MARIAM: Excuse you, sun.
MOLLY BLOOM: So the sun burps out this cloud of gassy particles. And those particles zip across millions of miles of space at top speed. Sometimes they head straight towards Earth.
MARIAM: Super hot, speedy electric gasesy sun particles. Oh no.
MOLLY BLOOM: If this gassy cloud directly hit earth, it could cause a lot of damage. There could be massive power outages, glitches with radio and satellites, and those gassy sun particles could even weaken our atmosphere over time. But lucky for us, the Earth is surrounded by something called a magnetic field, which acts like a protective shield.
MARIAM: Like a force field?
MOLLY BLOOM: Just like a force field. The Earth's magnetic field blocks the zooming, gassy sun particles from hitting Earth.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
So the Earth's magnetic field usually does a great job shielding us from those sun particles. But sometimes the sun has really, really big, powerful sun burps.
[BURPS]
THE SUN: Whoa. Excuse me.
MARIAM: That one was extra spicy.
MOLLY BLOOM: And these spicy sun burps are so big, with so many gassy electric particles, they start blasting Earth's magnetic force field.
SUBJECT: Coming through. Make way. Woo hoo.
MOLLY BLOOM: And the Earth's magnetic force field isn't perfect. It has some weak spots near the North and South poles.
MARIAM: If you were looking at a world globe, the North Pole would be on the top and the South Pole would be on the bottom.
MOLLY BLOOM: Right. And that's where the weak spots in the magnetic force field are. So when lots of those sun particles blast the force field, some of them make their way into the Earth's atmosphere near the poles.
CREW: Here we come. Watch out. Poles.
MARIAM: Sneaky sun particles.
MOLLY BLOOM: Yeah, so sneaky. The sun particles sneak their way through the Earth's magnetic force field. Some of them even sneak through the atmosphere. That big blanket of air that surrounds the planet.
CREW: So we sneak it, keep it on the down low, go straight that way to Earth's poles.
MOLLY BLOOM: And as they sneak through, the sun particles collide with stuff in our air, like nitrogen and oxygen.
CREW: Give me five oxygen. Up high, nitrogen. Down low. Too slow.
MOLLY BLOOM: As the gassy sun particles bump into the oxygen and nitrogen, they create bursts of light, which makes--
MARIAM: Auroras. So auroras happen when spicy sun belches bump into the gases in our atmosphere.
MOLLY BLOOM: Auroras usually appear closer to the North and South poles, because remember, that's where those sneaky sun particles can sometimes get into the Earth's atmosphere.
MARIAM: But sometimes you can see those further away from the poles, yeah?
MOLLY BLOOM: Right. If the sun burps out a lot of those charged gassy particles--
MARIAM: Like a super spicy belch--
MOLLY BLOOM: --you're more likely to see auroras further away from the poles. The stronger the sun belch, the stronger the auroras. We'll learn more about when and where you're most likely to see an Aurora in a bit. But first, it's time for the--
CREW: Mystry sound.
MOLLY BLOOM: So, Mariam, are you ready to hear the mystery sound?
MARIAM: Yeah, and I'm going to get it right.
MOLLY BLOOM: Yeah, I love the confidence. Let's hear it.
[ICE SPLASHING]
OK. That sound told a story. There was so much going on there. What did you hear?
MARIAM: I think it was like an ice dispenser.
MOLLY BLOOM: Nice. Can you describe an ice dispenser? Like, you're thinking in a fridge or like, what kind of ice dispenser?
MARIAM: Like the ones that are attached to the freezer or the fridge. And then when you press the button, then it dispenses the ice into your cup.
MOLLY BLOOM: I can see that. Excellent guess. Well, we will hear it again. Get another chance to guess and hear the answer after the credits.
MARIAM: Stay tuned.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
MOLLY BLOOM: We're working with our friends at Radiolab on an episode about naming objects in space, and it got us wondering about Earth's moon. Other planets in our solar system have moons with awesome names like Ganymede and Narvi. Why is Earth's moon just called moon? So we want to know, if you had to give our moon a name, what would it be? Mariam, what would you name our moon?
MARIAM: I would name a moon Celine.
MOLLY BLOOM: Celine. Tell me why.
MARIAM: My favorite book series is The Lunar Chronicles. And in The Lunar Chronicles, Celine is the missing Princess on Luna.
MOLLY BLOOM: And Luna, that's like, means moon, right?
MARIAM: Yeah.
MOLLY BLOOM: Very cool. That's a really beautiful name. Well, listeners, we want to hear from you, too. What do you think Earth's moon should be named? Record your moon name. Tell us why you think it's cool, and send it to us at brainson.org/contact. While you're there, send us your mystery sounds, drawings, and questions.
MARIAM: Like this one.
GROFFIN: Hi. My name is Griffin, and my question is, how does Wi-Fi work?
MOLLY BLOOM: You can find answers to questions like these on the Moment of Um podcast, a short dose of facts and fun every weekday. Find Moment of Um and more at brainson.org.
MARIAM: So keep listening.
MOLLY BLOOM: Brains On! Universe is a family of podcasts for kids and their adults. Since you're a fan of Brains on!, we know you'll love the other shows in our universe. Come on, let's explore.
CREW: Entering Brains On! Universe
CREW: To find my favorite podcasts. Brains On! Smash Boom Best Forever Ago, Picking Up Signal Forever Ago. The history show hosted by Joy Dolo.
JOY DOLO: Welcome to--
[THEME MUSIC]
Joy's Hall of Stalls. Every door in this hall leads to a different model of toilet from throughout history. You want a potty like it's 1999? Right this way. Zorp where did the signal go? Must find Forever Ago now.
JOY DOLO: Listen to Forever Ago. Wherever you get your podcast.
CREW: (SINGING) Ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba. Brains On!
MARIAM: You're listening to Brains On! I am Mariam.
MOLLY BLOOM: And I'm Molly. Today, we're talking about auroras.
MARIAM: Also known as the Northern or Southern lights.
MOLLY BLOOM: Auroras happen when energy from the sun collides with stuff in our air, like oxygen and nitrogen, creating a dazzling light show we can sometimes see at night. So we know why auroras happen. But can we predict when we see them?
MARIAM: To learn more, we called up Dr. Liz McDonald.
MOLLY BLOOM: She's a scientist at NASA and studies auroras.
MARIAM: Hi, Dr. Liz.
LIZ MCDONALD: Hi, Mariam.
MARIAM: I have some questions for you about auroras.
LIZ MCDONALD: All right.
MARIAM: Can you tell us about one of the coolest auroras you've ever seen?
LIZ MCDONALD: I would say the coolest I have ever seen was this event on May 10. I live in Washington State, and I got to go out to a dark sky park about an hour north of me. And the Aurora was pretty much happening from sunset to sunrise.
And it was all over the sky, not just to the north, but really active basically from the East to the West and kind of covering half the sky. And it was also this amazing red color. That's very, very unusual. And that means it's this very special, really strong storm.
MOLLY BLOOM: So can we predict when we'll see an Aurora again?
LIZ MCDONALD: Not really. It's very uncertain. We do watch the sun, and we know that the sun gets more active every 11 years, but we don't know within this active time exactly when it's going to get real active. And you might be able to see auroras very far away from the poles.
MARIAM: What's like the farthest place that you can see in aurora?
LIZ MCDONALD: Ooh, that's a very good question. And this recent event, we're still combing through a lot of observations, but it was definitely seen in all of the continental US. And I've seen photographic observations from Mexico, and the Caribbean.
MARIAM: When are you more likely to see an aurora?
LIZ MCDONALD: When it's dark, and if you are up at these high latitude places like Alaska and it's clear, and if you're up really late, like around midnight.
MARIAM: Do you think certain seasons have more aurora sightings?
LIZ MCDONALD: Yes, the best seasons for aurora are actually around March and September.
MARIAM: That's cool.
MOLLY BLOOM: During the event this past May, I could only see the auroras when I looked at it through my camera on my phone. So why is that?
LIZ MCDONALD: Yeah, so cameras and phones have sensors and they are more sensitive to color at night than the sensors in our eyes. So our eyes have not evolved to see color at night as well as cameras can.
MOLLY BLOOM: Super interesting.
MARIAM: Have scientists discovered anything new about auroras recently? What's still a mystery?
LIZ MCDONALD: Oh, there's a lot that's still a mystery. Events like the one that we just had are very rare. And so any time they happen, there's a lot of new science that will come out of them. They also-- they vary a lot. So we're kind of constantly trying to monitor what the aurora is doing.
And then also I work with just everyday people who have taken photographs. And a few years ago, some of those folks, they noticed a new unusual kind of aurora. And we worked together to determine that it really wasn't something that was very well-known to science. And they took so many photographs, and they also named it Steve.
[LAUGHTER]
So there's a relatively brand new type of aurora called Steve.
MOLLY BLOOM: Steve.
LIZ MCDONALD: And Steve is unusual because it occurs further away from the poles. So you might be watching aurora far to the north, and then you could see something overhead that kind of looks like a plane contrail going from east to west. But if you have one of these phones that can take a great picture of aurora, you would actually be able to see that it's kind of a mauve color with a little bit of the usual aurora green.
MARIAM: That's so cool. I've never seen an aurora before.
LIZ MCDONALD: Oh, I hope you will get to see one.
MOLLY BLOOM: What advice do you have for someone who wants to see auroras but hasn't been able to see them yet?
LIZ MCDONALD: We are at this kind of broad time of solar maximum, which means that over the next year, maybe two years, there will be chances for similar high activity. And you can check out our website with your parents. It's called Aurorasaurus. And we have some data. And you can also sign up for an alert if the Aurora is going to be visible near your location.
MOLLY BLOOM: That's great.
LIZ MCDONALD: You can also get familiar with observing the night sky even without an aurora. And some people, if you live in a city, there might be a lot of light pollution. But maybe there are times when you are able to, if you're camping or something like that, just take some looks at the night sky and see the Milky way, see meteors, all that kind of cool stuff.
MOLLY BLOOM: That's awesome.
MARIAM: Thanks for answering my questions, Dr. Liz.
LIZ MCDONALD: Thank you for the great questions.
MOLLY BLOOM: Listeners, if you want to sign up for alerts, or help scientists keep track of when and where auroras are happening, we'll have a link to the Aurorasaurus project in our show notes.
SUBJECT: Brains Brains. Brains On.
MARIAM: Molly, I can't help but notice that you made an outfit change.
MOLLY BLOOM: You mean my purple Sequin power suit? You like? It's custom.
MARIAM: I love it. And what did that podium come from?
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh, this old thing?
MARIAM: And are you holding an old timey microphone?
MOLLY BLOOM: Maybe.
MARIAM: Sequin power suit, podium, old timey microphone. Wait a second, are we about to play trivia?
MOLLY BLOOM: Ding, ding, ding. It's not just Molly anymore. When I put on my Sequin power suit, I'm game show Molly.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
What do you say, Mariam? Want to play some Aurora trivia?
MARIAM: Who could say no to game show, Molly? Let's do it.
MOLLY BLOOM: That is the correct answer. You're already doing great at this. It's time for--
[MUSIC PLAYING]
Aurora. or no aurora.
Your favorite Aurora trivia and best game to say out loud. Aurora or no Aurora. Mariam, for this game, I'm going to tell you a fact about Aurora's and you tell me whether you think it's true or false. If you think it's true, you'll say Aurora. If you think it's false, you'll say no aurora. Make sense?
MARIAM: Yeah, let's do this.
MOLLY BLOOM: Fabulous. First fact, auroras make noise. Aurora or no aurora?
MARIAM: Aurora.
MOLLY BLOOM: Correct. Good work.
MARIAM: Yes.
MOLLY BLOOM: Aurora can make sounds, sometimes described as a crackling, hissing or whistling sound. The sound is often too low for humans to hear without special equipment. But here's what a recording sounds like.
[WIND WHIRLING]
Wow. What did you think of that?
MARIAM: I do not like that sound. I'm glad it's too low for humans to hear it.
MOLLY BLOOM: Me too. That was intense. Kind of like aliens coming down to visit us.
MARIAM: Yeah.
MOLLY BLOOM: All right. On to the next. The name aurora comes from the Disney Princess Aurora, AKA Sleeping Beauty. Is that a aurora or an aurora?
MARIAM: I think it's no aurora.
MOLLY BLOOM: Correct again. These legendary lights were actually named after Aurora, the Roman goddess of dawn. Every morning, the goddess Aurora would fly into the sky and bring light from east to west. Disney's version of Sleeping Beauty was also named after this goddess. Ready for another question?
MARIAM: Yeah.
MOLLY BLOOM: Earth is the only planet with auroras, aurora or no aurora?
MARIAM: No aurora.
MOLLY BLOOM: Correct again, Mariam. There are actually auroras on other planets, including Mars, Saturn, Uranus, and Jupiter. OK, let's keep things rolling with another question. Auroras are different colors because of the different gases in our atmosphere. Aurora or aurora?
MARIAM: Aurora.
MOLLY BLOOM: Correct again, Mariam. Our atmosphere is made up of lots of different gases, and those gases create different colored auroras. So when those spicy sun particles we talked about earlier bonk into oxygen in our air, it makes green and sometimes bright red light. Nitrogen tends to make really deep blue or dark red auroras, and sometimes those blend together to make purple. Do you have a favorite color aurora, Mariam?
MARIAM: I like the cross between the blue and the green.
MOLLY BLOOM: Very pretty. All right, Mariam, that was an excellent job. You got 100% correct. You really know your stuff.
MARIAM: Yeah, auroras are never a bother.
MOLLY BLOOM: Thanks for playing, Mariam.
MARIAM: Thanks game show, Molly.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
MOLLY BLOOM: Auroras are colorful lights that we sometimes see at night.
MARIAM: They're also called the Northern or Southern lights.
MOLLY BLOOM: Auroras form when gaseous sun particles bump into oxygen and nitrogen in our air.
MARIAM: You're more likely to see auroras near the North or South poles, where the Earth's protective magnetic field is weaker.
MOLLY BLOOM: It's easiest to see auroras on a clear, dark night.
MARIAM: Auroras are different colors because of the different gases in our air.
MOLLY BLOOM: That's it for this episode of Brains On!
MARIAM: This episode was written and produced by--
MOLLY BLOOM: Ruby Guthrie.
MARIAM: It was also produced by--
ROSIE DUPONT: Rosie Dupont.
MARIAM: Our editors are--
SHAHLA FARZAN: Shahla Farzan.
MARIAM: And--
SANDEN TOTTEN: Sanden Totten.
MARIAM: Fact-checking by--
JESS MILLER: Jess Miller.
MOLLY BLOOM: We had engineering help from Jess Berg and Scott Leeder, with sound design by--
ROSIE DUPONT: Rosie DuPont.
MOLLY BLOOM: Our original theme music by--
MARC SANCHEZ: Marc Sanchez.
MARIAM: We had production help from the rest of the Brains On Universe team.
MOLLY BLOOM: Molly Bloom, Anna Goldfield, Nico Gonzalez Wisler
LAUREN HUMPERT: Lauren Humpert.
JOSHUA RAY: Joshua Ray.
MARC SANCHEZ: Marc Sanchez.
SHAHLA TRAVER: Sharla Traver.
MOLLY BLOOM: Anna Weggel.
MARIAM: And--
ARON WOLDESLASSIE: Aron Woldeslassie.
MOLLY BLOOM: Beth Perlman is our executive producer, and the executives in charge of APM Studios are Chandra Kavati and Joanne Griffith. Special thanks to Rachel Zuberi and Laura Brandt.
MARIAM: Brains On! is a non-profit public radio program.
MOLLY BLOOM: There are lots of ways to support the show. Subscribe to Brains On Universe on YouTube, or you can watch animated versions of some of your favorite episodes, or head to brainson.org.
MARIAM: While you're there, you can send us mystery sounds, drawings, and questions.
MOLLY BLOOM: OK, Mariam, are you ready to hear that mystery sound again.
MARIAM: Yep I think I got it right.
MOLLY BLOOM: All right.
[ENGINE ROLLING]
OK, so last time you thought an ice maker in a fridge or freezer. Do you have any new thoughts?
MARIAM: No, it's still kind of sounds like an ice dispenser.
MOLLY BLOOM: Are you ready for the answer?
MARIAM: Yeah.
MOLLY BLOOM: All right.
COLLIN: Hi, my name is Collin.
HARRY: My name is Harry.
COLLIN: And we're from Bentonville, Arkansas. And that was the sound of my mom's coffeemaker. To make it work, you got to put a coffee pot in, and then you shut the lid. Then you put a mug onto it, and then you push the button. And then you enjoy your coffee.
MOLLY BLOOM: That was a tough one.
MARIAM: Yeah.
MOLLY BLOOM: Have you heard of coffee maker before?
MARIAM: I think I have, but I really thought it was an ice dispenser.
MOLLY BLOOM: Yeah, I understand why you thought that because, like, there was, like, kind of clunking noises and there was, like, some liquid. I get it. It was a great guess. Well done.
[ENGINE ROLLING]
Now it's time for the Brains Honor roll. These are the incredible kids who keep the show going with their questions, ideas, mystery sounds, drawings, and hi-fives.
[LISTING HONOR ROLL]
[THEME MUSIC]
We will be back next week with an episode about screens.
MARIAM: Thanks for listening.
SUBJECT: Brains On! is supported in part by a grant from the National Science Foundation.
MOLLY BLOOM: OK, I got my water bottle, check, my headphones, check, and my purple sequined power suit to change into later, check. I am so ready for today's episode.
RUBY: Rosie, I'll say it once, and I'll say it again. You just can't argue with light up butts.
ROSIE Ruby, what about constellations? The Big Dipper. Come on.
MOLLY BLOOM: Hey, Rosie and Ruby, R squared. What's up, you two?
RUBY: Oh Molly, perfect. You got to help us settle something.
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh like, which curd of cottage cheese taste best? Because, believe me, I have both strong opinions and expertise.
ROSIE: No, let's table that for later. We're debating what nature's best light show is.
MOLLY BLOOM: Because it's definitely bioluminescent animals. You know, animals that light up like fireflies.
ROSIE: OK, that's cute. But we both know stars are nature's best light show.
MOLLY BLOOM: Stars? Stars are nothing but big balls of space gas.
ROSIE: Big balls of space gas that light up the sky.
MOLLY BLOOM: OK, both of these things are awesome, but I think nature's best light show is something else entirely.
ROSIE: Ooh, do tell.
MOLLY BLOOM: Yeah spill it, Bloom. I think nature's best light shows are auroras.
RUBY: Aur-- what now?
MOLLY BLOOM: Auroras. They are some of the most magical, awe-inspiring sights in the night sky. Lights, pulse, and swirl across the sky in all different colors, from electric green to pink to bright red.
ROSIE: Whoa, that sounds incredible.
RUBY: Yeah, I want to hear more about these auroras, too.
MOLLY BLOOM: Well, lucky for you, we're doing a whole episode on them. Cue the theme music.
[THEME MUSIC]
You're listening to Brains On! From APM Studios. I'm your host, Molly Bloom. And today, I'm with Mariam from Scottsdale, Arizona. Hi, Mariam.
MARIAM: Hi, Molly.
MOLLY BLOOM: Listeners, prepare to be dazzled because we're talking all about auroras-- the beautiful display of dancing lights we sometimes see at night.
MARIAM: If you're in the Northern hemisphere, they're also called the Northern lights or Aurora borealis.
MOLLY BLOOM: And if you're in the Southern hemisphere, they're called the Southern lights or Aurora australis.
MARIAM: Auroras are like nature's light show.
MOLLY BLOOM: They happen all year round, even during the day.
MARIAM: But it's impossible to see Auroras during the day because it's too bright.
MOLLY BLOOM: Like all good light shows, auroras are best seen at night.
MARIAM: Auroras can look like streaks of light across the sky.
MOLLY BLOOM: And they come in all sorts of colors.
MARIAM: Green.
MOLLY BLOOM: Purple.
MARIAM: Red.
MOLLY BLOOM: And pink.
MARIAM: But these colorful lights don't just stay still.
MOLLY BLOOM: They ripple and swirl.
MARIAM: They dance.
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh yeah. Aurora's totally know how to boogie.
MARIAM: A light show and a dance show. Sign me up.
MOLLY BLOOM: Aurora's really are a spectacular sight. And earlier this year, lots of us saw auroras across the globe, and you all had a ton of questions about them.
RIVERS: My name is Rivers.
COHEN: And my name is Cohen.
RIVERS: And we're from Kenneth Falls, Minnesota.
COHEN: Our question is, what are the Northern lights?
LEAH: Hello, I'm Leah. I was wondering, how auroras happen.
CLAIR: Hi, my name is Clair, and I live in Arizona. And my question is, how do the Northern lights appear?
AISYAH: Hello, my name is Aisyah. And I'm in Saudi Arabia. And my question is, why do Northern lights happen in the cold places but not in the hot places. And how do they happen.
FLETCHER: Hi, I'm Fletcher and I'm from Hampstead, North Carolina. How are Aurora borealis made?
MOLLY BLOOM: Mariam, you sent us a question about auroras, too.
MARIAM: Yeah, I wanted to know how do auroras form.
MOLLY BLOOM: So what made you curious about this?
MARIAM: I became curious about auroras when I was reading the book Golden Compass by Philip Pullman.
MOLLY BLOOM: The Golden Compass, I love that book. It has been a while since I read it, though. So can you remind me what role auroras play in it?
MARIAM: In The Golden Compass, Aurora's like a gateway into a different dimension.
MOLLY BLOOM: That is so awesome. So auroras are like a portal to other worlds?
MARIAM: Yeah, it's really cool.
MOLLY BLOOM: That is really cool. So have you gotten to see an Aurora in person?
MARIAM: No, they don't have any in Arizona, and I haven't been to any other places.
MOLLY BLOOM: Have you seen photos of them?
MARIAM: Yeah, in science class and stuff.
MOLLY BLOOM: So how would you describe it to someone who hasn't gotten to seen a picture of them?
MARIAM: It's like a big streak of different colors across the sky.
MOLLY BLOOM: And do you ever look up to the sky for other things like clouds or stars?
MARIAM: Yeah, we have this really big telescope, and you can see really far with it. And I like to look at Jupiter and its moons.
MOLLY BLOOM: So if you could go to outer space to see some of the things out there, how do you feel about that?
MARIAM: That would be cool.
MOLLY BLOOM: Where would be your first destination in outer space?
MARIAM: I would go to Mars because it's smells like Earth.
MOLLY BLOOM: Would you want to live on Mars, if you could?
MARIAM: I don't think so. I like Earth.
MOLLY BLOOM: I like the earth, too. We got good gravity. We got good sun, a nice atmosphere. It's really lovely here.
SUBJECT: Brains On!
MOLLY BLOOM: So even though we think of auroras as dazzling nighttime displays, they happen because of something much hotter and brighter-- the sun. Auroras happen when super tiny things called particles from the sun zoom through space and bump into the super tiny air particles in our atmosphere.
MARIAM: The atmosphere is the blanket of air that surrounds Earth.
MOLLY BLOOM: When those sun particles bump into air particles in Earth's atmosphere, they create a brilliant light show. But how exactly does this happen, and why? To answer those questions, let's start with our pal, the Sun.
THE SUN: Did somebody call their favorite star? It's me, the sun.
MOLLY BLOOM: The sun is made up of very, very hot electric gas particles.
THE SUN: That's right. I'm hot, gassy, and sassy. Triple threat.
MARIAM: So hot, so gassy.
MOLLY BLOOM: And the surface of the sun is so hot and so gassy that sometimes it releases some of its hot electric gas particles off into space. You can think of it like the sun is burping out these particles.
THE SUN: I did warn you, I'm gassy.
SUBJECT: See you, sun. Thanks for burping us ou. Yippee.
MARIAM: Excuse you, sun.
MOLLY BLOOM: So the sun burps out this cloud of gassy particles. And those particles zip across millions of miles of space at top speed. Sometimes they head straight towards Earth.
MARIAM: Super hot, speedy electric gasesy sun particles. Oh no.
MOLLY BLOOM: If this gassy cloud directly hit earth, it could cause a lot of damage. There could be massive power outages, glitches with radio and satellites, and those gassy sun particles could even weaken our atmosphere over time. But lucky for us, the Earth is surrounded by something called a magnetic field, which acts like a protective shield.
MARIAM: Like a force field?
MOLLY BLOOM: Just like a force field. The Earth's magnetic field blocks the zooming, gassy sun particles from hitting Earth.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
So the Earth's magnetic field usually does a great job shielding us from those sun particles. But sometimes the sun has really, really big, powerful sun burps.
[BURPS]
THE SUN: Whoa. Excuse me.
MARIAM: That one was extra spicy.
MOLLY BLOOM: And these spicy sun burps are so big, with so many gassy electric particles, they start blasting Earth's magnetic force field.
SUBJECT: Coming through. Make way. Woo hoo.
MOLLY BLOOM: And the Earth's magnetic force field isn't perfect. It has some weak spots near the North and South poles.
MARIAM: If you were looking at a world globe, the North Pole would be on the top and the South Pole would be on the bottom.
MOLLY BLOOM: Right. And that's where the weak spots in the magnetic force field are. So when lots of those sun particles blast the force field, some of them make their way into the Earth's atmosphere near the poles.
CREW: Here we come. Watch out. Poles.
MARIAM: Sneaky sun particles.
MOLLY BLOOM: Yeah, so sneaky. The sun particles sneak their way through the Earth's magnetic force field. Some of them even sneak through the atmosphere. That big blanket of air that surrounds the planet.
CREW: So we sneak it, keep it on the down low, go straight that way to Earth's poles.
MOLLY BLOOM: And as they sneak through, the sun particles collide with stuff in our air, like nitrogen and oxygen.
CREW: Give me five oxygen. Up high, nitrogen. Down low. Too slow.
MOLLY BLOOM: As the gassy sun particles bump into the oxygen and nitrogen, they create bursts of light, which makes--
MARIAM: Auroras. So auroras happen when spicy sun belches bump into the gases in our atmosphere.
MOLLY BLOOM: Auroras usually appear closer to the North and South poles, because remember, that's where those sneaky sun particles can sometimes get into the Earth's atmosphere.
MARIAM: But sometimes you can see those further away from the poles, yeah?
MOLLY BLOOM: Right. If the sun burps out a lot of those charged gassy particles--
MARIAM: Like a super spicy belch--
MOLLY BLOOM: --you're more likely to see auroras further away from the poles. The stronger the sun belch, the stronger the auroras. We'll learn more about when and where you're most likely to see an Aurora in a bit. But first, it's time for the--
CREW: Mystry sound.
MOLLY BLOOM: So, Mariam, are you ready to hear the mystery sound?
MARIAM: Yeah, and I'm going to get it right.
MOLLY BLOOM: Yeah, I love the confidence. Let's hear it.
[ICE SPLASHING]
OK. That sound told a story. There was so much going on there. What did you hear?
MARIAM: I think it was like an ice dispenser.
MOLLY BLOOM: Nice. Can you describe an ice dispenser? Like, you're thinking in a fridge or like, what kind of ice dispenser?
MARIAM: Like the ones that are attached to the freezer or the fridge. And then when you press the button, then it dispenses the ice into your cup.
MOLLY BLOOM: I can see that. Excellent guess. Well, we will hear it again. Get another chance to guess and hear the answer after the credits.
MARIAM: Stay tuned.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
MOLLY BLOOM: We're working with our friends at Radiolab on an episode about naming objects in space, and it got us wondering about Earth's moon. Other planets in our solar system have moons with awesome names like Ganymede and Narvi. Why is Earth's moon just called moon? So we want to know, if you had to give our moon a name, what would it be? Mariam, what would you name our moon?
MARIAM: I would name a moon Celine.
MOLLY BLOOM: Celine. Tell me why.
MARIAM: My favorite book series is The Lunar Chronicles. And in The Lunar Chronicles, Celine is the missing Princess on Luna.
MOLLY BLOOM: And Luna, that's like, means moon, right?
MARIAM: Yeah.
MOLLY BLOOM: Very cool. That's a really beautiful name. Well, listeners, we want to hear from you, too. What do you think Earth's moon should be named? Record your moon name. Tell us why you think it's cool, and send it to us at brainson.org/contact. While you're there, send us your mystery sounds, drawings, and questions.
MARIAM: Like this one.
GROFFIN: Hi. My name is Griffin, and my question is, how does Wi-Fi work?
MOLLY BLOOM: You can find answers to questions like these on the Moment of Um podcast, a short dose of facts and fun every weekday. Find Moment of Um and more at brainson.org.
MARIAM: So keep listening.
MOLLY BLOOM: Brains On! Universe is a family of podcasts for kids and their adults. Since you're a fan of Brains on!, we know you'll love the other shows in our universe. Come on, let's explore.
CREW: Entering Brains On! Universe
CREW: To find my favorite podcasts. Brains On! Smash Boom Best Forever Ago, Picking Up Signal Forever Ago. The history show hosted by Joy Dolo.
JOY DOLO: Welcome to--
[THEME MUSIC]
Joy's Hall of Stalls. Every door in this hall leads to a different model of toilet from throughout history. You want a potty like it's 1999? Right this way. Zorp where did the signal go? Must find Forever Ago now.
JOY DOLO: Listen to Forever Ago. Wherever you get your podcast.
CREW: (SINGING) Ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba. Brains On!
MARIAM: You're listening to Brains On! I am Mariam.
MOLLY BLOOM: And I'm Molly. Today, we're talking about auroras.
MARIAM: Also known as the Northern or Southern lights.
MOLLY BLOOM: Auroras happen when energy from the sun collides with stuff in our air, like oxygen and nitrogen, creating a dazzling light show we can sometimes see at night. So we know why auroras happen. But can we predict when we see them?
MARIAM: To learn more, we called up Dr. Liz McDonald.
MOLLY BLOOM: She's a scientist at NASA and studies auroras.
MARIAM: Hi, Dr. Liz.
LIZ MCDONALD: Hi, Mariam.
MARIAM: I have some questions for you about auroras.
LIZ MCDONALD: All right.
MARIAM: Can you tell us about one of the coolest auroras you've ever seen?
LIZ MCDONALD: I would say the coolest I have ever seen was this event on May 10. I live in Washington State, and I got to go out to a dark sky park about an hour north of me. And the Aurora was pretty much happening from sunset to sunrise.
And it was all over the sky, not just to the north, but really active basically from the East to the West and kind of covering half the sky. And it was also this amazing red color. That's very, very unusual. And that means it's this very special, really strong storm.
MOLLY BLOOM: So can we predict when we'll see an Aurora again?
LIZ MCDONALD: Not really. It's very uncertain. We do watch the sun, and we know that the sun gets more active every 11 years, but we don't know within this active time exactly when it's going to get real active. And you might be able to see auroras very far away from the poles.
MARIAM: What's like the farthest place that you can see in aurora?
LIZ MCDONALD: Ooh, that's a very good question. And this recent event, we're still combing through a lot of observations, but it was definitely seen in all of the continental US. And I've seen photographic observations from Mexico, and the Caribbean.
MARIAM: When are you more likely to see an aurora?
LIZ MCDONALD: When it's dark, and if you are up at these high latitude places like Alaska and it's clear, and if you're up really late, like around midnight.
MARIAM: Do you think certain seasons have more aurora sightings?
LIZ MCDONALD: Yes, the best seasons for aurora are actually around March and September.
MARIAM: That's cool.
MOLLY BLOOM: During the event this past May, I could only see the auroras when I looked at it through my camera on my phone. So why is that?
LIZ MCDONALD: Yeah, so cameras and phones have sensors and they are more sensitive to color at night than the sensors in our eyes. So our eyes have not evolved to see color at night as well as cameras can.
MOLLY BLOOM: Super interesting.
MARIAM: Have scientists discovered anything new about auroras recently? What's still a mystery?
LIZ MCDONALD: Oh, there's a lot that's still a mystery. Events like the one that we just had are very rare. And so any time they happen, there's a lot of new science that will come out of them. They also-- they vary a lot. So we're kind of constantly trying to monitor what the aurora is doing.
And then also I work with just everyday people who have taken photographs. And a few years ago, some of those folks, they noticed a new unusual kind of aurora. And we worked together to determine that it really wasn't something that was very well-known to science. And they took so many photographs, and they also named it Steve.
[LAUGHTER]
So there's a relatively brand new type of aurora called Steve.
MOLLY BLOOM: Steve.
LIZ MCDONALD: And Steve is unusual because it occurs further away from the poles. So you might be watching aurora far to the north, and then you could see something overhead that kind of looks like a plane contrail going from east to west. But if you have one of these phones that can take a great picture of aurora, you would actually be able to see that it's kind of a mauve color with a little bit of the usual aurora green.
MARIAM: That's so cool. I've never seen an aurora before.
LIZ MCDONALD: Oh, I hope you will get to see one.
MOLLY BLOOM: What advice do you have for someone who wants to see auroras but hasn't been able to see them yet?
LIZ MCDONALD: We are at this kind of broad time of solar maximum, which means that over the next year, maybe two years, there will be chances for similar high activity. And you can check out our website with your parents. It's called Aurorasaurus. And we have some data. And you can also sign up for an alert if the Aurora is going to be visible near your location.
MOLLY BLOOM: That's great.
LIZ MCDONALD: You can also get familiar with observing the night sky even without an aurora. And some people, if you live in a city, there might be a lot of light pollution. But maybe there are times when you are able to, if you're camping or something like that, just take some looks at the night sky and see the Milky way, see meteors, all that kind of cool stuff.
MOLLY BLOOM: That's awesome.
MARIAM: Thanks for answering my questions, Dr. Liz.
LIZ MCDONALD: Thank you for the great questions.
MOLLY BLOOM: Listeners, if you want to sign up for alerts, or help scientists keep track of when and where auroras are happening, we'll have a link to the Aurorasaurus project in our show notes.
SUBJECT: Brains Brains. Brains On.
MARIAM: Molly, I can't help but notice that you made an outfit change.
MOLLY BLOOM: You mean my purple Sequin power suit? You like? It's custom.
MARIAM: I love it. And what did that podium come from?
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh, this old thing?
MARIAM: And are you holding an old timey microphone?
MOLLY BLOOM: Maybe.
MARIAM: Sequin power suit, podium, old timey microphone. Wait a second, are we about to play trivia?
MOLLY BLOOM: Ding, ding, ding. It's not just Molly anymore. When I put on my Sequin power suit, I'm game show Molly.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
What do you say, Mariam? Want to play some Aurora trivia?
MARIAM: Who could say no to game show, Molly? Let's do it.
MOLLY BLOOM: That is the correct answer. You're already doing great at this. It's time for--
[MUSIC PLAYING]
Aurora. or no aurora.
Your favorite Aurora trivia and best game to say out loud. Aurora or no Aurora. Mariam, for this game, I'm going to tell you a fact about Aurora's and you tell me whether you think it's true or false. If you think it's true, you'll say Aurora. If you think it's false, you'll say no aurora. Make sense?
MARIAM: Yeah, let's do this.
MOLLY BLOOM: Fabulous. First fact, auroras make noise. Aurora or no aurora?
MARIAM: Aurora.
MOLLY BLOOM: Correct. Good work.
MARIAM: Yes.
MOLLY BLOOM: Aurora can make sounds, sometimes described as a crackling, hissing or whistling sound. The sound is often too low for humans to hear without special equipment. But here's what a recording sounds like.
[WIND WHIRLING]
Wow. What did you think of that?
MARIAM: I do not like that sound. I'm glad it's too low for humans to hear it.
MOLLY BLOOM: Me too. That was intense. Kind of like aliens coming down to visit us.
MARIAM: Yeah.
MOLLY BLOOM: All right. On to the next. The name aurora comes from the Disney Princess Aurora, AKA Sleeping Beauty. Is that a aurora or an aurora?
MARIAM: I think it's no aurora.
MOLLY BLOOM: Correct again. These legendary lights were actually named after Aurora, the Roman goddess of dawn. Every morning, the goddess Aurora would fly into the sky and bring light from east to west. Disney's version of Sleeping Beauty was also named after this goddess. Ready for another question?
MARIAM: Yeah.
MOLLY BLOOM: Earth is the only planet with auroras, aurora or no aurora?
MARIAM: No aurora.
MOLLY BLOOM: Correct again, Mariam. There are actually auroras on other planets, including Mars, Saturn, Uranus, and Jupiter. OK, let's keep things rolling with another question. Auroras are different colors because of the different gases in our atmosphere. Aurora or aurora?
MARIAM: Aurora.
MOLLY BLOOM: Correct again, Mariam. Our atmosphere is made up of lots of different gases, and those gases create different colored auroras. So when those spicy sun particles we talked about earlier bonk into oxygen in our air, it makes green and sometimes bright red light. Nitrogen tends to make really deep blue or dark red auroras, and sometimes those blend together to make purple. Do you have a favorite color aurora, Mariam?
MARIAM: I like the cross between the blue and the green.
MOLLY BLOOM: Very pretty. All right, Mariam, that was an excellent job. You got 100% correct. You really know your stuff.
MARIAM: Yeah, auroras are never a bother.
MOLLY BLOOM: Thanks for playing, Mariam.
MARIAM: Thanks game show, Molly.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
MOLLY BLOOM: Auroras are colorful lights that we sometimes see at night.
MARIAM: They're also called the Northern or Southern lights.
MOLLY BLOOM: Auroras form when gaseous sun particles bump into oxygen and nitrogen in our air.
MARIAM: You're more likely to see auroras near the North or South poles, where the Earth's protective magnetic field is weaker.
MOLLY BLOOM: It's easiest to see auroras on a clear, dark night.
MARIAM: Auroras are different colors because of the different gases in our air.
MOLLY BLOOM: That's it for this episode of Brains On!
MARIAM: This episode was written and produced by--
MOLLY BLOOM: Ruby Guthrie.
MARIAM: It was also produced by--
ROSIE DUPONT: Rosie Dupont.
MARIAM: Our editors are--
SHAHLA FARZAN: Shahla Farzan.
MARIAM: And--
SANDEN TOTTEN: Sanden Totten.
MARIAM: Fact-checking by--
JESS MILLER: Jess Miller.
MOLLY BLOOM: We had engineering help from Jess Berg and Scott Leeder, with sound design by--
ROSIE DUPONT: Rosie DuPont.
MOLLY BLOOM: Our original theme music by--
MARC SANCHEZ: Marc Sanchez.
MARIAM: We had production help from the rest of the Brains On Universe team.
MOLLY BLOOM: Molly Bloom, Anna Goldfield, Nico Gonzalez Wisler
LAUREN HUMPERT: Lauren Humpert.
JOSHUA RAY: Joshua Ray.
MARC SANCHEZ: Marc Sanchez.
SHAHLA TRAVER: Sharla Traver.
MOLLY BLOOM: Anna Weggel.
MARIAM: And--
ARON WOLDESLASSIE: Aron Woldeslassie.
MOLLY BLOOM: Beth Perlman is our executive producer, and the executives in charge of APM Studios are Chandra Kavati and Joanne Griffith. Special thanks to Rachel Zuberi and Laura Brandt.
MARIAM: Brains On! is a non-profit public radio program.
MOLLY BLOOM: There are lots of ways to support the show. Subscribe to Brains On Universe on YouTube, or you can watch animated versions of some of your favorite episodes, or head to brainson.org.
MARIAM: While you're there, you can send us mystery sounds, drawings, and questions.
MOLLY BLOOM: OK, Mariam, are you ready to hear that mystery sound again.
MARIAM: Yep I think I got it right.
MOLLY BLOOM: All right.
[ENGINE ROLLING]
OK, so last time you thought an ice maker in a fridge or freezer. Do you have any new thoughts?
MARIAM: No, it's still kind of sounds like an ice dispenser.
MOLLY BLOOM: Are you ready for the answer?
MARIAM: Yeah.
MOLLY BLOOM: All right.
COLLIN: Hi, my name is Collin.
HARRY: My name is Harry.
COLLIN: And we're from Bentonville, Arkansas. And that was the sound of my mom's coffeemaker. To make it work, you got to put a coffee pot in, and then you shut the lid. Then you put a mug onto it, and then you push the button. And then you enjoy your coffee.
MOLLY BLOOM: That was a tough one.
MARIAM: Yeah.
MOLLY BLOOM: Have you heard of coffee maker before?
MARIAM: I think I have, but I really thought it was an ice dispenser.
MOLLY BLOOM: Yeah, I understand why you thought that because, like, there was, like, kind of clunking noises and there was, like, some liquid. I get it. It was a great guess. Well done.
[ENGINE ROLLING]
Now it's time for the Brains Honor roll. These are the incredible kids who keep the show going with their questions, ideas, mystery sounds, drawings, and hi-fives.
[LISTING HONOR ROLL]
[THEME MUSIC]
We will be back next week with an episode about screens.
MARIAM: Thanks for listening.
Transcription services provided by 3Play Media.
