Aurora Borealis

this is one of the things on my 'to do' list before i pass on - to witness one of the most spectacular light shows in the world!

Auroras also known as northern and southern polar lights which are natural light displays in the sky, usually observed at night, particularly in the polar regions.

In northern latitudes, the effect is known as the aurora borealis, named after the Roman goddess of dawn, Aurora, and the Greek name for the north wind, Boreas.

The aurora borealis is also called the northern polar lights as it is only visible in the sky from the Northern Hemisphere, with the chance of visibility increasing with proximity to the North Magnetic Pole.

Its southern counterpart, the aurora australis or the southern polar lights is only visible from high southern latitudes in Antarctica, South America or Australasia.

Scientifically, the Auroras are produced by the collision of charged particles from Earth's magnetosphere, mostly electrons but also protons and heavier particles with atoms and molecules of Earth's upper atmosphere.

The lights are at their most frequent in late autumn and winter/early spring. October, February and March are the best months for auroral observations.

there is a slight problem with this plan of mine though - i'm not sure i can handle the extreme cold temperature! oh well, will worry about it when this wish comes true one day - for now dream on....