Space Station Watches Technicolor Aurora Erupt: Big Pic

Sept. 28, 2011 -- Magnetic activity on the sun has really been running on high gear recently and while it hasn't caused any problems so far, skywatchers around the world are being treated to some exceptionally energetic aurorae -- and the same goes for the skywatchers in orbit!

This photo, taken from the International Space Station on Sept. 26, looks down on aurora ablaze with emerald and crimson light. The colors are created by energetic ions streaming from the sun interacting with the atoms and molecules in our atmosphere. Oxygen glows green, while nitrogen glows red and blue.

WATCH VIDEO: SATURN'S AURORA

PHOTOS: 5 Ways the Solar Wind Will Blow You Away

Altitude plays a part as well when determining the colors of the aurora, since high-altitude oxygen atoms will release red light after being excited by collisions with solar wind particles. As the upper atmosphere is sparsely populated with atmospheric gases (there are therefore less collisions to suppress auroral emissions), the red color will dominate -- it takes longer for oxygen to release red photons. Lower in the atmosphere, where the atmospheric gasses become denser, collisions suppress the emission of red photons and the faster release of green photons will dominate.

Other colors can be seen in the aurora, depending on the height of emission and dominance of the various atmospheric components generating that color. The auroral light will often mix, creating vivid blues, oranges and even pinks.

ANALYSIS: Space Station Soars Over the Southern Lights

The undulating shapes of aurorae are created by Earth's constantly-shifting magnetic fields, which trap the charged particles from the sun and funnel them down into the atmosphere.

As we draw closer to the sun's solar maximum in 2013 we can expect more light shows like this -- and hopefully more great photos by astronauts working in the ISS high above as well!

For solar activity updates and more ground-based images of aurorae from all over the world, visit spaceweather.com.

ANALYSIS: Astronaut Photographs Perseid Meteor... From Space

-- by Jason Major.

Image credit: NASA