"The Aurora Tree"
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Pictured is a visual coincidence between the dark branches of a nearby tree and bright glow of a distant aurora. The beauty of the aurora—combined with how it seemed to mimic a tree right nearby—mesmerized the photographer to such a degree that he momentarily forgot to take pictures. When viewed at the right angle, it seemed that this tree had aurora for leaves. Fortunately, before the aurora morphed into a different overall shape, he came to his senses and captured the awe-inspiring momentary coincidence.
Typically triggered by solar explosions, aurora are caused by high energy electrons impacting the Earth's atmosphere around 150 kilometers up. The unusual Earth-sky collaboration was witnessed during March 2017 in Iceland.
Also known as the northern lights (aurora borealis) or southern lights (aurora australis), auroras are colorful, dynamic, and often visually delicate displays of an intricate dance of particles and magnetism between the Sun and Earth called space weather. When energetic particles from space collide with atoms and molecules in the atmosphere, they can cause the colorful glow that we call auroras.
https://science.nasa.gov/sun/auroras/
Image Description: A leafless tree is pictured below a starry sky. In the sky behind the tree is an aurora glowing mostly green, along with purple. The shape of the aurora seems to follow the branches of the tree.
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Image Date: March 2017
Release Date: March 8, 2026
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