A SKY FILLED WITH COLORFUL METEORS

 A SKY FILLED WITH COLORFUL METEORS 

For a few brief moments, the night sky brightened with streaks of light in different colors, as small space rocks burned up in Earth’s atmosphere.

What this scene is inspired by are meteor showers — when Earth passes through streams of dust left behind by comets. Tiny particles hit our atmosphere at extreme speeds and burn up, creating bright streaks we call “shooting stars.” Some of the most famous annual displays include the Perseid meteor shower and the Geminid meteor shower, both known for producing dozens of meteors per hour under dark, clear skies.

The colors we sometimes see come from minerals in the meteoroids and gases in Earth’s atmosphere glowing as they heat up .. sodium can glow yellow, magnesium green, and nitrogen can produce reds and purples.

 Skies like this are best experienced far from city lights, in dark-sky locations such as Atacama Desert, Wadi Rum, or Big Bend National Park.