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Aurora Borealis by Frederic Edwin Church

Aurora Borealis by Frederic Edwin Church
Aurora Borealis by Frederic Edwin Church The largest solar storm in recorded history was 1859’s Carrington Event, named after the astronomer who observed the solar flare behind it. The storm’s electromagnetic energy disrupted telegraph systems across Europe and North America, shocking operators and setting some stations on fire. Its power still inspires fear today, given our dependence on electronics. But the storm was also a spectacle, with brilliant auroras lighting much of the northern hemisphere. In 1865, American artist Frederic Edwin Church painted Aurora Borealis, perhaps inspired by the lights he saw in 1859. Image credit: Frederic Edwin Church. Frederic Edwin Church