December 11
AURORA BOREALIS DAY
The first display of the northern lights was recorded in America. The sighting was made in New England on this day in 1719. The report said that a mysterious face seemed to appear in the atmosphere; and, since most aurora borealis displays occur in September and October and again in March and April, this is very strange, indeed! The simplest explanation for the green, red, and frost-white northern lights is that, just as the gas in a neon light glows when charged with electricity, so the gas in the atmosphere glows with specific colors when charged with electric particles from the sun. For a more technical explantation, see Mankind’s Explanation: Aurora Borealis or Aurora Season Begins.
As far as we know, there is still no technical explanation for the off-season display.
Those Were the Days, the Today in History service from 440 International
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