Auroa Borealis:
Pictures from Iceland by Sigurdur F. Stefnisson
Click here to go to the Web site for some fantastic pictures and notes of the Northern Lights (Auroae Borealis) by S. F. Stefnisson. Some of the pictures are reproduced below. The text below is from the notes that accompany the pictures.
Iceland is within that belt and the auroras are very common The auroral ovals widens when solar activity is high and solar winds strong. Here Siggi captured this beautiful scene of the auroras in full swing and the red color is caused by the solar particles hitting high altitude oxygen.
The auroras exist in the outmost layer of the atmosphere. They are created by electrically charged particles that make the thin air shine, not unlike a fluorescent light. They can be seen in auroral belts that forms 20-25 degrees around the geomagnetic poles, both the north and the south. The Northern Lights, also called Aurora Borealis (Southern lights or Aurora Australis in the southern hemisphere), are one of the most spectacular shows on this earth. Sometimes they cover almost all of the sky and seem to be dancing around with such grace and speed that one can only watch in awe.