A stunning aurora light show turned the sky green for some Australians stuck at home
A rare phenomenon proved to be a stunning form of entertainment for some Australians stuck at home.
The green glow that covered the sky Monday evening above residents of Hobart in the Australian island of Tasmania is known as the aurora australis, or the southern lights.
Tim Grimsey, a Hobart local who travels in search for aurora, told Storyful that he took the stunning video of the southern lights "from the convenience of (his) front yard."
The southern lights, Grimsey pointed out, were visible despite light pollution — which tends to obscure the beautiful vision for avid aurora enthusiasts. Auroras tend to be most visible during the autumn and vernal equinoxes.
"The stay-at-home directions in Tasmania have been in effect for a number of weeks now, so it was wonderful to be treated to such a powerful show from around 8 p.m," he told Storyful.
The equivalent of the aurora borealis in the Southern Hemisphere, aurora australis are most commonly found in southern Australia, Tasmania, New Zealand and Antarctica, per Smithsonian Magazine.
Aurora form when solar particles collide with atmospheric gases such as nitrogen, which gives off blue and purple light and oxygen, the latter of which emits the distinct green lights captured here, as well as red ones, according to NASA.
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