Southern lights

southern lightsAurora australis over Antarctica as captured by NASA's IMAGE satellite on Sept. 11, 2005 and superimposed onto NASA's satellite-based Blue Marble image.

Southern lights, luminous atmospheric display visible in the Southern Hemisphere. See aurora.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia BritannicaThis article was most recently revised and updated by Meg Matthias.
Citation Information
Article Title: Southern lights
Website Name: Encyclopaedia Britannica
Publisher: Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
Date Published: 10 November 2026
Access Date: November 13, 2026