<p>Residents of Edmonton, Alberta, had a lot to be thankful for when green auroras graced the sky on October 8, <a href="http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/travel/countries/canada-guide/">Canada</a>'s Thanksgiving Day. </p><p> Named after Aurora, the Roman goddess of dawn, the vivid beams of light from aurora borealis result from collisions between charged particles released from the sun's atmosphere and gaseous particles in Earth's atmosphere. </p><p> "It was a crazy night!" photographer Zoltan Kenwell wrote on <a href="http://spaceweather.com/">spaceweather.com</a>. </p><p> "The show was underway around 9:30 p.m. MST and was still going strong at 4:40 a.m. MST. It was a very windy night and a chilly 4 degrees [Celsius, 24 degrees Fahrenheit]. Burrr!" </p><p> (See more aurora pictures: "<a href="http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2012/09/pictures/120906-auroras-northern-lights-sun-solar-flare-science/">Solar Flare Sparks 'Snakes,' 'Spears.</a>'") </p><p> <em>—Sasha Ingber</em></p>
Thankful for Auroras
Residents of Edmonton, Alberta, had a lot to be thankful for when green auroras graced the sky on October 8, Canada's Thanksgiving Day.
Named after Aurora, the Roman goddess of dawn, the vivid beams of light from aurora borealis result from collisions between charged particles released from the sun's atmosphere and gaseous particles in Earth's atmosphere.
"It was a crazy night!" photographer Zoltan Kenwell wrote on spaceweather.com.
"The show was underway around 9:30 p.m. MST and was still going strong at 4:40 a.m. MST. It was a very windy night and a chilly 4 degrees [Celsius, 24 degrees Fahrenheit]. Burrr!"
(See more aurora pictures: "Solar Flare Sparks 'Snakes,' 'Spears.'")
—Sasha Ingber
Aurora Pictures: Best Fall Photos of Northern Lights
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