Reflected Aurora Over Alaska

                    There are two types of aurora: the Aurora borealis (Northern Lights) and the Aurora australis (Southern Lights).Auroras are produced when charged particles from the sun, called solar wind, enter the Earth's atmosphere. This stream of particles becomes trapped for a time in the outermost parts of the Earth's magnetic field, eventually spiraling down toward the north and south magnetic poles. In the process they ionize (create an electric charge within) the oxygen and nitrogen gas in the atmosphere, causing the atmosphere to glow.

Sources: Engelbert, Phillis. Astronomy and Space: From the Big Bang to the BigCrunch, vol. 1, pp. 45; Hopkins, Jeanne. Glossary of Astronomy and Astrophysics, p. 10; World Book Encyclopedia, vol. 1, pp. 891-92.

                 Alaska is a place I would love to visit in my life time. The main reason I would like to go to alaska is because of the Northern Lighst.the  Aurora Borealis looks very beautiful in this picture and I love how the picture also show the constellations.  

The Scale of the Universe - Interactive

                                This video makes you realize how big the Universe is it also makes you realize how big and small you are. I love this video not only because it is a visual explanation but because it shows you how big the universe is. It also shows you the estimated size of the universe and the only part of the universe that is observable by us. 






Flash Animation Credit & Copyright: Cary & Michael Huang

Milky Way Over Quiver Tree Forest

                        I am a nerd when it comes to astronomy. I know most constellations and I love the night sky. I live in a valley so I can see more constellations then in the city, however I can't see all the constellations that's when I turn to  the internet. My favorite website to visit is apod.nasa.gov . They always have an Astronomy picture of the day and I would like to share some picture from that website as well as others.

                       I would like to start off with this picture because this is what I wish I would see when I look up at the night sky. I know someday I will travel to a place with no city lights and see a beautiful night sky like this one.

Image Credit & Copyright: Florian Breuer