East Asian records of auroras may date back to 10,000 BCE

The scientific name for northern lights came from two Greco-Roman gods

Although cave paintings may have depicted them millennia earlier, one of the oldest known references to auroras is a Babylonian cuneiform tablet from about 600 BCE. In 1619, Galileo Galilei named the phenomenon in the northern hemisphere "aurora borealis" after the Roman goddess of dawn—Aurora—and the Greek god of the north wind—Boreas.

The intensity of auroral activity approximately follows the sun's 11-year cycle

The density, speed, and temperature of material ejected by the sun are at their lowest at the start of each cycle, resulting in weaker interactions with Earth's magnetic field and muted, diffuse auroras. While the average solar wind speed is about 300 kilometers (186 miles) per second, the fastest winds can be more than three times faster.

The strongest recorded geomagnetic storm in history created auroras near the equator

On Sept. 1, 1859, the Carrington Event—named after the astronomer who observed the preceding solar flare—saw a massive coronal mass ejection strike Earth, disrupting telegraph systems, sparking electrical fires, and reportedly illuminating the night sky enough to allow newspapers to be read at night.

Scientists quantify how far from the poles auroras will be visible using the G-scale

The Geomagnetic Storm scale indicates the expected severity of the deformation of Earth's magnetic field based on the amount of energy injected by the solar wind. Solar activity is monitored using various satellites to forecast these storms, which can also be used to anticipate damage and disruption to power systems, radio communications, and satellite navigation.

See the 25 of the best photos of auroras from around the world.

Crackling, popping, and rustling sounds have been reported during auroras

At the altitudes where auroras take place—between 100 and 300 kilometers (62 to 186 miles)—air is not dense enough to efficiently vibrate and carry sound waves to the ground. However, one theory suggests that the geomagnetic energy behind auroras can trigger electrical discharges near the surface, which may be the cause of reported sounds.

Rare chance for US states to see Northern Lights

A solar storm in July 2023 offered people in 17 American states, as well as Canada, an unusual chance to witness the Northern Lights, or aurora borealis. The 11-year solar cycle, reaching its peak in 2024, made the lights visible in places further south than usual. Read up on the announcement from the Geophysical Institute at the University of Alaska at Fairbanks here.

NASA's James Webb Space Telescope captures enormous aurora displays on Jupiter

The auroras flicker faster and brighter than those seen on Earth. This contrasts with earlier predictions that the lights would fade slowly over several minutes, providing insights into how Jupiter's magnetosphere operates.

View a gallery of various auroral shapes

Auroras can be generally classified as discrete (well-defined shapes) or diffuse (hazy shapes), with light taking various forms, including curtains, arcs, pillars, and rays. Some auroras can also pulsate, particularly after intense periods of auroral activity are winding down.

Planeterrellas create artificial auroras that mimic the atmospheric displays of light by setting up an electric field between two metal balls in a jar filled with a small amount of air.

Scientists have tested atmospheric models by firing rockets into the aurora borealis

Functioning like components of a CT scan, the missiles transmit signals that can be used to identify charged particles and electromagnetic currents in slices. The slices are then combined to construct a computer-based model of Earth's atmospheric structure, which is used to compare the accuracy of physics-based models.

A basic camera setup or a phone is enough to capture stunning aurora photos

Auroras result from solar particles interacting with atmospheric elements. This article provides tips on improving the quality of aurora photos taken with simple equipment and the best times and locations to yield better photos.

The Ancient Chinese harnessed solar power for heating and cooling 6,000 years ago

Neolithic Chinese homes faced south for winter sun warmth, while overhangs shielded them from high summer sun. These efforts also influenced urban planning, with cities aligning streets east-west for optimal solar exposure.

The earliest record of dream interpretation dates to Ancient Sumer

Ancient Babylonia was a hub for oracular studies. Dreams were seen as nightly dispatches from lower-world or chthonic deities, and practices including astrology, omen reading, and liver divination attained wide-reaching influence. Few surviving records of oneiromancy—interpreting dreams as revelations of future events—have been found.

Ancient civilizations predicted eclipses by tracking different cycles of their recurrence

The periodic nature of the orbits of the sun, moon, and Earth results in several series called saros cycles, in which the geometric configuration of these celestial bodies that produces an eclipse recurs after about 6585 days. Because eclipses are viewable from different locations on Earth, there exist many saros cycles, one for each ecliptic configuration.

Human records of influenza stretch back more than two millennia

Accounts of flu-like illness appear as early as 412 BCE, when Hippocrates described a sudden wave of cough and fever. Centuries of recurring outbreaks culminated in the first clearly documented pandemic in 1580, spreading from Asia into Europe and Africa.

Scientists can determine Earth's past climate conditions by analyzing air trapped in microscopic bubbles within ice cores—columns of compressed snow layers that build up over hundreds of thousands of years.

Understanding ball lightning remains an area of active research

Observations of glowing orbs of light that appear during or after thunderstorms have been documented since at least the 12th century, but their rarity and short lifetimes have made their study challenging. Some theories suggest they form when lightning vaporizes pockets of gases in the air or certain materials on the ground.

Ice cream can be traced back to the 7th century

Documents from ancient China refer to a frozen milk dish, a predecessor of the treat we now know. That evolved into a blend of buffalo milk, flour, and fragrant camphor oil that more closely resembled our ice cream.

Scientists can determine Earth's past climate conditions by analyzing air trapped in microscopic bubbles within ice cores—columns of compressed snow layers that build up over hundreds of thousands of years.

Visualize the path of every solar eclipse from 1900 to 2099 and see what each looks like when observed from different locations on Earth.

Learn more about the history of fireworks, which dates back to an accidental invention during an alchemist's quest for information about immortality.

Learn more about the history of fireworks, which date back to an accidental invention during an alchemist's quest for information about immortality

When bamboo in China was tossed into fire in 200 BCE, there was an explosion. About 1000 years later, around 800 CE, an alchemist searching for secrets to immortality mixed sulfur, charcoal, and potassium nitrate together, leading to gunpowder. That mixture was then packed into bamboo or paper tubes, leading to fireworks.

Humans were forced to adapt to survive a supervolcano eruption 74,000 years ago

The Toba supereruption ejected 2800 cubic kilometers of ash, resulting in global cooling from blocked sunlight and acid rain. Archaeological sites show that humans developed bow-and-arrow technology to survive in arid conditions by fishing in seasonal waterholes.

Historians estimate only 1% of shipwrecks have been discovered

The oldest known shipwreck dates to around 2,700–2,300 BCE, but evidence suggests humans started open-ocean sailing at least 50,000 years ago. Many have completely deteriorated but artifacts aboard the vessels remain, while many lack historical records of the event or location.

What we know about aurochs, the ancestors of modern cattle

The relationship between humans and cattle is invaluable and longstanding. Evidence suggests cattle's wild, larger, and now-extinct ancestors, the aurochs, were also linked to early humans. Similarly valuable for their milk and labor power, yet significantly more threatening due to their size, aggression, and speed, auroch domestication was slow and complex. Discover new information about the fascinating ancestors of modern cows and the potential of re-introducing the species with selective breeding.

What is galactic archaeology?

In the same way that archaeologists excavate and analyze artifacts of human civilization, galactic archaeologists observe the light in the universe to glean lessons on its age, evolution, and more. Learn about this niche area of study with this 10-minute podcast.

Asia's agriculture-focused set of 24 'small seasons'

In contrast to the four broad seasons and their basis in astronomy and climate, ancient farmers in China and Japan had many more and varied seasons (or "sekki). Take Keichitsu (March 6 to 21), for example: this means "going-out of the worms" when bugs come out from hibernation.

The Baghdad battery shows no evidence of use as a battery

The 2,000-year-old clay jar held an iron rod inside a copper cylinder and could have generated electricity if filled with an available electrolyte, such as grape juice. Before the jar was looted during the US invasion of Iraq, preventing further study, experts suggested it most likely housed scrolls.

Albert Einstein's equations predicted black holes decades before their discovery

For nearly 50 years, scientists dismissed black holes as implausible oddities, despite solutions to the equations indicating their existence. But the 1970s discovery of intense X-rays from Cygnus X-1 and its massive hidden companion flipped the consensus.

Graffiti dates back to at least ancient Pompeii, where citizens scrawled messages to one another on public walls

Volcanic activity may have triggered the Black Death by spewing gases that led to crop failures in Europe, thus forcing the import of grain ships with plague-infested fleas.

Electrical grids worldwide must double their power delivery capacity by 2050 to meet surging demand from AI and electric vehicles.

Dirty lightning is a thunderstorm created from friction between rising and falling flows of ash and smoke during volcanic eruptions.

The history of many kitchen appliances involves unexpected discoveries and applications, including wartime radar turned hamster defroster and replacing an 'ice king' with heat-stealing boxes.

Track the location of the Voyager probes, currently between 13 and 15 billion miles away from Earth.

While El Niño moves warm Pacific Ocean waters east along the equator, La Niña moves them west, shifting where rainfall will become more common for months.

Radioactive elements can introduce software errors because the ionizing radiation they produce can detach electrons from atoms, and computer code relies on the distribution of electrons.

For centuries, it was common to sleep in two shifts: a few hours at the beginning of the night, and a longer period beginning around midnight

The term 'algorithm' originated from the Latinized name of al-Khwārizmī, a 9th-century mathematician whose works introduced Arabic numerals and the decimal-based numeral system to Europe and whose treatise 'Al-Jabr' gave algebra its name.

Before humans, the Soviet Union and the United States sent animals—including apes, dogs, and cats—to space during the Space Race.

Poison ivy's characteristic rash is caused by an allergic response to an oily compound in the plant called urushiol.

View the ten deadliest tornadoes in US history.

Fish populations in the Great Barrier Reef have increased after installing waterproof speakers on the ocean floor that played recordings of sounds from healthy coral reefs.

Long before Major League Baseball began allowing instant replay for balls and strikes, an umpire reluctantly used the technology to determine whether a hit was a home run, a move that inadvertently ushered in a new era for the sport.

The word 'jazz' evolved from 'jasm,' 19th-century American slang for 'energy'

A century of Billboard issues documenting the evolution of popular music.

The Great Salt Lake's distinct dual coloration results from high-salinity organisms that only live in the northern portion and produce a purple protein.

'Shogun,' a 1980s TV series, helped popularize sushi in the US by stimulating an American interest in Japanese culture.

NBA superstar Victor Wembanyama spent the 2025 summer training with monks in central China to enhance his body and mind.