Earth - 2

For those who have seen them, the Aurora Borealis and Aurora Australis are spectacles to remember. Aurorae are caused by currents of energetic charged particles in Earth's magnetosphere flowing through the upper atmosphere. The interaction of the solar wind with Earth's magnetosphere drives these currents. The more active the Sun, especially during the peak of its 11-year solar cycle, the more charged particles flow to Earth’s magnetic poles. These charged particles eventually collide with gas molecules in the upper atmosphere, causing them to ionize (lose electrons) and emit colored light.