NORTHERN LIGHTS Definition & Meaning

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northern lights

noun

(used with a plural verb)

aurora borealis.

northern lights

plural noun

another name for aurora borealis

northern lights

See under aurora

northern lights

See aurora borealis.

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51�Թ� History and Origins

Origin of northern lights¹

First recorded in 1715–25

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

That way, we can both enjoy the beautiful northern lights – and rest easy knowing the lights will still be on when we go back inside.

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The couple named their child Aurora for their love of the aurora borealis, also known as the northern lights.

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It’s hard not to consider humankind’s own future in this region-unspecified, newly aquatic land where mountaintops are islands, northern lights dazzle and finger-like towers that seem man-made dot the background.

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Joanne said she had captured other phenomena in the night skies this year including a rocket launch, the northern lights and the milky way.

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A severe geomagnetic storm could disrupt communications and bring northern lights to parts of California, according to a warning from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

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When To Use

What are the northern lights?

The northern lights are the shimmering display of lights that sometimes appears in Earth’s Northern Hemisphere.The phenomenon is also commonly called the aurora borealis. The northern lights are an aurora—a natural light display in the sky that is caused by particles from the sun interacting with Earth’s magnetic field. The word borealis is Latin for boreal, which simply means “northern.” The northern lights appear in many colors ranging from green and pink to red, yellow, and blue.Auroras are not exclusive to Earth and occur on every planet in our solar system except Mercury. And the northern lights are not the only aurora on Earth. The aurora in the Southern Hemisphere is called the southern lights or aurora australis. Both the northern and southern versions can be called aurora polaris because they occur around Earth’s poles, but this term is not commonly used.The northern lights dazzle the many people who travel to see the natural light show, which is considered one of Earth’s most magical phenomena.

northern leaf blight Northern Mariana Islands

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