The sky turns purple: the rare Aurora Borealis phenomenon in Sicily

Recently, an extraordinary astronomical phenomenon affected vast territories from Europe to Asia, including Italy, where the night skies lit up red and purple, and in some regions even green. We are talking about theaurora borealisan event generally confined to regions close to the poles, but which on this occasion reached unusually southern latitudes, eventually colouring the skies over Sicily.

Why was the aurora borealis also seen in Sicily?

What made this extraordinary spectacle possible was a powerful G4-class geomagnetic storm (which then intensified at G5) that originated from intense coronal mass ejections from the Sun reaching the peak of its magnetic activity. These events have disrupted the Earth's magnetic field to such an extent that the visual effect of the auroras has been pushed to much more southerly latitudes than normal. Thanks to these exceptional conditions, the aurora has been immortalised in iconic locations in Sicily such as theEtna and the Isole Aeolian Islandsgiving Sicilians one of the most fascinating natural spectacles in the world.

Scientific explanation of the Aurora Borealis

The aurora borealis occurs when the solar wind, a stream of charged particles released by the Sun, interacts with the Earth's magnetic field. During events of strong solar activity, these particles, mainly protons and electrons, collide with the Earth's atmosphere and emit light, giving rise to the aurora. This is referred to as aurora borealis if it occurs in thenorthern hemisphere (boreal), while the name aurora australis refers to the analogue of thesouthern hemisphere (austral).

Tips for observing future northern lights in Sicily

Observing an aurora borealis in Sicily is considered an extremely rare and extraordinary event. Due to its geographical position, much further south than the areas where the phenomenon is commonly visible, Sicily can only enjoy this spectacle under very special conditions or during solar storms of great intensity. Consequently, the opportunity to observe an aurora in Sicily is limited to short periods of time and during very specific solar cycles. Outside these moments, the only way to be almost certain of witnessing this enchanting phenomenon is to travel to more geographically favourable regions of the world, such as Scandinavia or Canada, where auroras are a more frequent and predictable occurrence.

For those hoping to catch this rare event in Sicily, experts recommend preparing for observation during the night hours from 22:00, looking at north. It is essential to choose locations that are as far as possible from light pollution, ideal locations include mountain areas, open countryside or beaches far from city lights, where the night sky presents itself in all its majestic beauty.