{
  "id": 8213924,
  "title": "Yes, there’s an aurora season, and it’s here",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/18/yes-theres-an-aurora-season-and-its-here",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-09-18T09:17:44.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "EarthSky",
    "slug": "earthsky",
    "url": "https://earthsky.org/sun/aurora-season-auroras-equinox-connection/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Auroras, or the Northern and Southern Lights, do indeed have an annual season, occurring around the fall and spring equinoxes each year. This phenomenon has been known to scientists for over a century. The reason behind this biannual increase in geomagnetic storms, which cause auroras, involves magnetism, geometry, and the Russell-McPherron effect. This effect, first proposed by UCLA scientists Christopher Russell and Robert McPherron in 1973, connects the Earth's magnetic field with the magnetic field carried from the sun via the solar wind. The \"north-south\" component of the sun's magnetic field, known as the Bz component, fluctuates over the year, reaching its maximum during the equinoxes. When the Bz component of the solar wind is opposite to that of Earth's magnetic field, geomagnetic storms and auroras are more likely to occur. This is because opposite magnetic fields attract, creating a hole in Earth's magnetic field that allows solar wind to flow more easily towards the poles, resulting in auroras. Additionally, an equinoctial effect also contributes to increased aurora activity during the equinoxes due to the alignment of Earth's magnetic poles with the solar wind.",
  "summary": "There's an aurora season around the equinoxes, due to the way the magnetic fields of the sun and the Earth work in conjunction with sun-Earth geometry. The post Yes, there’s an aurora season, and it’s here first appeared on EarthSky .",
  "key_points": [
    "Auroras have annual season around fall and spring equinoxes",
    "Russell-McPherron effect explains increased geomagnetic storms",
    "Bz component of solar wind fluctuates, peaks at equinoxes"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}