Look for the Northern Lights Tonight: Aurora Borealis Has a Season, and It Just Started

Aurora borealis is one of the coolest astronomical events that we can see with the naked eye. It makes the sky glow beautiful colors, and auroras are just random enough to be exciting occurrences. But they may not be as random as we all think: Historical data suggests that aurora borealis has seasons where they are more likely to occur than other times of the year. The spring equinox is one of those times, and it's right around the corner. Read more: Spring Equinox Is Almost Here: Have You Heard the Egg-Balancing Myth? The idea that aurora borealis has "seasons" comes from data compiled by NASA astrophysicist, Dr. David Hathaway. According to the data, the northern lights are more likely to show up in March, April, September, and October. Those are the months closest to the spring and autumn equinoxes -- the time of year when the sun crosses the equator and delivers almost equal amounts of daylight to the entire planet. Hathaway's data is the latest, but it's not the first. Per Eart ... Read full article.