Suggested Searches

Northern Lights Elementary Guide

The image shows the northern lights, or aurora borealis, displaying vibrant green ribbons across a starry night sky. A silhouette of tall evergreen trees is visible at the bottom, framing the celestial spectacle.
This photo shows instances of the black aurora, the dark patches that sometimes form within an aurora where electrons escape upward. The photo was taken near Thompson, Manitoba, Canada, on Sept. 29, 2024, at 3:19 a.m. CDT. The photographer, Donna Lach, submitted this image to NASA’s Aurorasaurus citizen science project, which works with participants around the world to photograph, report and verify aurora sightings to advance auroral science. Learn more at www.aurorasaurus.org.
Levels
  • Introductory (K-5)
Material Type
  • animation
  • activity
Heliophysics Big Ideas
  • Big Idea 1.2 – The Sun is active…
NGSS
  • ESS1 - Earth's Place in the Universe
  • ESS2 - Earth's Systems
Heliophysics Topics
  • aurora
  • sun
  • solar_wind
Heliophysics Missions
  • parker_solar_probe
Material Cost per Learner free
Language english

Click Here: Find out how storms on the Sun are connected to the northern lights above Earth.