An Exploration of the Northern Lights

Last Friday evening, May 10th between 11pm-12 some of us were fortunate to see in our own towns and cities across the UK, the Northern Lights and many students had taken photos as they eagerly waited for a glimpse of these spectacular lights. This became an intriguing topic of interest for them, so we turned this into a science lesson.

We started with an introduction to Auroras, where these natural lights can be seen and what causes them, we then discussed the formation of them and the different types of Auroras. Students were particularly interested in the appearance of the Auroras and what shapes they make. We then explored and compared observations and photography of the Auroras. Students were very enthusiastic about having the chance to see these incredible lights with some becoming interested in having future lessons in observing the sky regularly as a hobby or future scientific pursuit.