A rare “appearance” in the sky of Athens did it Northern lights, as the director of the EMY, Thodoris Kolidas, announced in a post on social media.
As he states, “a total of 12 documented cases of Northern Seals appearing over the Greek area have been recorded in the last 500 years and today is the 13th”.
The phenomenon created a solar storm of rare intensity directed towards Earth.
The phenomenon occurs when charged particles collide with gases in the Earth’s atmosphere around the magnetic poles. In the Northern Hemisphere, most of this activity takes place within a zone known as the aurora, which covers latitudes between 60 and 75 degrees. When activity is strong, it expands and covers a larger area – so the spectacular aurora can occasionally be seen further south. A very strong solar storm hit overnight Friday into Saturday, supercharging the Northern Lights and making them visible in many parts of Europe.