Aurora Borealis
“Oh, send out Your light and Your truth! Let them lead me; let them bring me to Your holy hill and to Your tabernacle.” [Psalm 43:3]
No words are adequate to describe the magnificent splendor of the natural phenomenon known as the Aurora Borealis. This spectacular display is also called the Northern or Southern Lights because it is seen predominantly around the polar regions of the earth. The luminous marvel may appear in colors of red, green, yellow, blue, and violet as well as in a variety of forms, such as patches of light, streamers, arcs, rays, or even shimmering draperies.
The Northern Lights have been described since ancient times and are even mentioned in the Old Testament, but only recently have we discovered what causes them. The sun gives off high-energy-charged particles or ions that speed through space at over 500 miles per second. When this stream of plasma, or solar wind, strikes the earth’s magnetic field, it is channeled toward the polar regions. When these electricallycharged particles collide with the oxygen and nitrogen atoms in the ionosphere, they start to glow. Oxygen atoms give off a green or brownish-red color, while nitrogen atoms emit blue or red. These may combine to form other colors. This is much the same way that electrons passing through the gases in a neon tube make a neon sign light up. So these spectacular auroras are really God’s neon lights.
The brightest auroras seem to coincide with periods of the greatest sunspot activity and with magnetic solar storms. It has been estimated that these solar winds can generate up to 100,000 megawatts of electricity in a three-hour exhibition. Scientists are still studying the solar winds, hoping someday the energy of the auroras might be used for practical purposes. Unfortunately, these intense displays also cause interference with power lines, radio and television broadcasts, and satellite communications.
It is also true that most of the dazzling lights of Earth interrupt our communication with God. It’s easy to allow the things of this life to distract us from our relationship with Him. The Bible tells us, “…all that is in the world – the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life – is not of the Father but is of the world” (1.John 2:16). Those dazzling lights can hypnotize, unless we keep our eyes focused on the pure light of Jesus.
