AURORA

There are 2 types of aurora, Aurora Borealis & Aurora Australis, seen at the north & south poles respectively. Although they look very magical, but their formation is actually natural & simple.

When solar wind, which is the wind from the sun gets trapped by Earth's magnetism, charged particles escape from the magnetosphere near the north & south poles, where the field lines intersect with the atmosphere. Their collisions with air rip apart some atmospheric molecules, creating the aurora. (light show)

Therefore, aurora are seen only at the poles, and not any other parts of the Earth. It's indeed a pity, for people like me living at the equator.

More aurora pictures