Quiz on The Northern Lights

On which celestial body does our aurora's energy ultimately originate?

• The Sun ✓ (Correct answer)
• The Moon
• Jupiter
• Distant stars

Source: The solar wind streaming off the Sun is the engine behind every aurora.

What is the scientific name for the aurora seen in the far north?

• Aurora borealis ✓ (Correct answer)
• Aurora australis
• Aurora polaris
• Aurora magnetica

Source: The northern lights are aurora borealis; the southern twin is aurora australis.

Which colour is by far the most common in the northern lights?

• Green ✓ (Correct answer)
• Red
• Blue
• Purple

Source: Oxygen at around 100 km glows green, which is why most auroras look green.

Which gas glows green when energised during an aurora?

• Oxygen ✓ (Correct answer)
• Nitrogen
• Hydrogen
• Helium

Source: Oxygen produces the aurora's signature green glow when it is energised.

Which season offers the best aurora viewing in the far north?

• Winter ✓ (Correct answer)
• Summer
• Spring
• Late autumn afternoons

Source: Long, dark winter nights make the lights easiest to spot, not the bright summer.

The southern equivalent of the northern lights is known as the what?

• Southern lights ✓ (Correct answer)
• Antarctic glow
• Polar curtain
• Solar veil

Source: Around Antarctica the same phenomenon is simply called the southern lights.

What causes the glowing colours of the aurora in our sky?

• Solar particles hitting gases ✓ (Correct answer)
• Sunlight on ice clouds
• Moonlight refraction
• Heat from the Earth's core

Source: Charged particles from the Sun smash into atmospheric gases, making them glow like a neon sign.

Which country is famously marketed as a prime aurora destination?

• Iceland ✓ (Correct answer)
• Ireland
• Switzerland
• Portugal

Source: Iceland sits right under the auroral oval, making it a tourist hotspot for the lights.

Why are auroras concentrated near the Earth's poles?

• The magnetic field funnels particles ✓ (Correct answer)
• The poles are closest to space
• Ice reflects the glow
• Cold air conducts charge

Source: Earth's magnetic field steers solar particles toward the poles like a giant funnel.

Roughly how high above the ground does most auroral light occur?

• About 100 kilometres ✓ (Correct answer)
• About 10 kilometres
• About 1,000 kilometres
• About 5 kilometres

Source: The glow typically starts near 100 km up, far above where airplanes fly.

Which Roman goddess gives the aurora its name?

• Goddess of dawn ✓ (Correct answer)
• Goddess of the moon
• Goddess of the sea
• Goddess of war

Source: Aurora was the Roman goddess of dawn, fitting for lights that paint the night sky.

On roughly what cycle does solar activity peak, boosting auroras?

• 11 years ✓ (Correct answer)
• 1 year
• 25 years
• 100 years

Source: The Sun's roughly 11-year cycle means aurora displays surge and fade over a decade.

Which rare nitrogen-driven aurora colour is the hardest to see?

• Blue ✓ (Correct answer)
• Green
• Yellow
• Orange

Source: Blue light from nitrogen is faint and our eyes struggle with it in the dark.

Which scale measures the geomagnetic strength driving aurora activity?

• Kp index ✓ (Correct answer)
• Richter scale
• Beaufort scale
• Saffir scale

Source: Aurora chasers watch the Kp index; higher numbers push the lights farther south.

Eruptions of plasma that supercharge auroras are called what?

• Coronal mass ejections ✓ (Correct answer)
• Solar eclipses
• Sunspot flares
• Magnetic storms

Source: A coronal mass ejection hurls billions of tons of plasma that can ignite huge displays.

Rare high-altitude red auroras are produced by which gas?

• Oxygen ✓ (Correct answer)
• Nitrogen
• Argon
• Carbon dioxide

Source: Above 200 km, thin oxygen glows deep red instead of its usual green.

Which moving feature, not a true aurora, was named STEVE?

• A purple light ribbon ✓ (Correct answer)
• A green spiral
• A red halo
• A blue curtain

Source: STEVE is a mauve ribbon of hot gas that scientists only recently distinguished from auroras.

Which planet hosts auroras far larger than Earth's?

• Jupiter ✓ (Correct answer)
• Mars
• Venus
• Mercury

Source: Jupiter's monster magnetic field powers auroras bigger than our entire planet.

The shape of the zone where auroras appear is best described as a what?

• Ring around each pole ✓ (Correct answer)
• Cap over each pole
• Band across the equator
• Cone above the pole

Source: Auroras form an oval ring around each magnetic pole, not a solid cap over it.

Indigenous Cree people traditionally saw the aurora as what?

• Spirits of the dead dancing ✓ (Correct answer)
• A hunting fire
• A frozen rainbow
• A warning of war

Source: Many northern peoples, including the Cree, viewed the lights as ancestors dancing in the sky.