google-site-verification: googlec7193c3de77668c9.html

Rare Steve phenomenon and Northern Lights dazzle in UK skies

Steve – or to give it its full name, Strong Thermal Emission Velocity Enhancement – is unpredictable and only lasts for a short amount of time.

Little is known about its formation and why it can sometimes appear during an aurora display.

While auroras happen in an oval shape, Steve appears as a ribbon and lasts for 20 minutes to an hour before disappearing.

While Steve is only spotted in the presence of an aurora, it is not a normal aurora as scientists suggests it comprises of a fast-moving stream of extremely hot particles called a sub-auroral ion drift, or SAID.

As Steve is unpredictable and only lasts for a short time, recording occurrences from the ground is rare.

The last sightings of Steve in the UK were back in November 2023.

While there have been photographs of Steve for decades, it only got the name Steve in 2016, following a US citizen science project funded by Nasa and the National Science Foundation.


Source link

Views: 6

See also  Man jailed for stalking Girls Aloud's Cheryl Tweedy in Buckinghamshire

Check Also

Birmingham City Council fines itself £472,000 for Clean Air Zone breaches

One in eight of the council’s fleet vehicles still break its own Clean Air Zone …

I just want freedom from fear, says girl raped by teenage boys as sentences to be reviewed

The teenager tells BBC Newsnight she is suffering from flashbacks and living in fear following …

My daughter woke up with a numb arm and died two weeks later

A mum whose daughter died weeks after a brain tumour diagnosis says her death must …

Leave a Reply

Available for Amazon Prime
Making digital tools accessible for everyone.