**An
aurora, sometimes referred to as a
polar light, is a natural
light display in the sky, predominantly seen in the high latitude (
Arctic and
Antarctic) regions.Auroras are produced when the
magnetosphere is sufficiently disturbed by the
solar wind that the trajectories of charged particles in both solar wind and
magnetospheric plasma, mainly in the form of electrons and protons, precipitate them into the upper atmosphere (
thermosphere/
exosphere), where their energy is lost. The resulting ionization and excitation of atmospheric constituents emits light of varying colour and complexity.**
