Sometimes everything just aligns. This image captures 'Steve,' a distinct atmospheric phenomenon, hovering directly above the icy expanse of a frozen Ness Lake. Unlike the Northern Lights, 'Steve' appears at mid latitudes, further south than where you usually find an Aurora.
'Steve' shares its origins with space weather conditions that produce Auroras, but it isn't an Aurora itself. It forms differently, not from electron precipitation. Researchers believe it's created by a narrow, 25 km (16 mi) band of high-temperature plasma, reaching about 3000°C (5430°F), and moving rapidly at 6 km/s (3.7 mi/s)—a stark contrast to the slower 10 m/s (33 ft/s) movements outside this plasma ribbon.
Interestingly, 'Steve' is sometimes accompanied by a 'picket fence' aurora, though not always. This picket fence aurora, always located below 'Steve,' is thought to result from electron precipitation. It's only recently that the scientific world has begun to study and understand this phenomenon in detail.
Currently, it remains a mystery whether the electron precipitation that results in the 'picket fence' aurora is directly produced by 'Steve' or if 'Steve' merely acts as a guiding force, channeling the electrons into position. The relationship between these two atmospheric phenomena continues to be a topic of intrigue and study in the scientific community.
