The Northern Lights – A2 English Reading Comprehension
Northern lights over a dark landscape. Image from Wikimedia Commons.
Free A2 English reading comprehension about the Northern Lights. Read the short science passage, answer the questions, then continue with Speed Reading practice.
The aurora borealis, or Northern Lights, can fill the night sky with moving curtains of green, red or purple light. The display begins with particles released by the Sun. Earth’s magnetic field guides many charged particles toward polar regions. High in the atmosphere, they collide with gases such as oxygen and nitrogen. These collisions release light. The colour depends partly on the gas and altitude involved. Auroras are most often seen at high northern latitudes, while a similar phenomenon in the south is called the aurora australis.
