Scientists from the University of York in Canada have found an explanation for one of the varieties of white nights that occurs at low latitudes. During this phenomenon, the sky remains light enough for people to read or discern distant objects. A press release for the study is posted on Phys.org.
White nights are typical for temperate and northern latitudes before and after the summer solstice. In this case, all the darkness of the day consists of twilight. However, sometimes the phenomenon was observed much further south, which until now has been a mystery to researchers.
Scientists who have studied data from meteorological satellites suggest that the phenomenon is caused by atmospheric waves that converge with each other at specific locations. This amplifies the weak light scattered in the Earth's air envelope, as well as the greenish glow that is emitted by oxygen atoms that have absorbed solar energy. As a result, natural night lighting is about 10 times brighter than usual.
In April 2017, meteorologists recorded another mysterious phenomenon arising from powerful flares on the Sun. At the same time, whole clouds of ions are formed in the atmosphere, which can lead to disruptions in radio communications.
