Northern Lights over the Alps again

Northern Lights again in the Alpine countries

It depends on the solar cycle (see blog Pulse of the sun), but it is generally rather rare to see the Northern Lights (lat. Aurora borealis) in the Alpine region, for example in Switzerland, Liechtenstein, southern Germany or Austria. However, this evening and next night will be the second time in a month that you will have the opportunity to marvel at this colorful natural spectacle between the clouds, at least in places where the clouds have temporarily lifted. The last time we saw the Northern Lights was recently, on the night of September 24-25, 2023.

As the name suggests, the Northern Lights generally occur most frequently north or south of the respective polar circles, i.e. in the polar regions. In the northern hemisphere they are called aurora borealis, in the southern hemisphere aurora australis. They are formed when electrically charged particles from the solar wind collide with oxygen and nitrogen atoms in the upper layers of the earth's atmosphere and ionize them. This creates the different colors. The green aurora originates from an altitude of around 100 to 200 kilometers, while the red aurora originates from an altitude of over 200 kilometers.

Below are some impressive pictures from Switzerland, Austria and Germany taken this evening.