Aurora

[uh-rawr-uh, uh-rohr-uh]

noun

plural

auroras, aurorae 

1. the ancient Roman goddess of the dawn.

2. (lowercase),  dawn.

3. (lowercase),  a radiant emission from the upper atmosphere that occurs sporadically over the middle and high latitudes of both hemispheres in the form of luminous bands, streamers, or the like, caused by the bombardment of the atmosphere with charged solar particles that are being guided along the earth's magnetic lines of force.

4. a city in central Colorado, near Denver.

5. a city in northeastern Illinois.

6. a first name.

Aurora

¹

/ ɔːˈrɔːrə /

noun

1. Greek counterpart: Eos. the Roman goddess of the dawn

2. the dawn or rise of something

Aurora

²

/ ɔːˈrɔːrə /

noun

1. another name for Maewo

aurora

³

/ ɔːˈrɔːrə /

noun

1. an atmospheric phenomenon consisting of bands, curtains, or streamers of light, usually green, red, or yellow, that move across the sky in polar regions. It is caused by collisions between air molecules and charged particles from the sun that are trapped in the earth's magnetic field

2. poetic,  the dawn

aurora

plural

auroras 

1. A brilliant display of bands or folds of variously colored light in the sky at night, especially in polar regions. Charged particles from the solar wind are channeled through the Earth's magnetic field into the polar regions. There the particles collide with atoms and molecules in the upper atmosphere, ionizing them and making them glow. Auroras are of greatest intensity and extent during periods of increased sunspot activity, when they often interfere with telecommunications on Earth.

2. ◆ An aurora that occurs in southern latitudes is called an aurora australis (ô-strā|||PRIMARY_STRESS|||lĭs) or southern lights. When it occurs in northern latitudes it is called an aurora borealis (bôr′ē-ăl|||PRIMARY_STRESS|||ĭs) or northern lights.

3. See also magnetic storm

Other Word Forms

• aurorally adverb
• auroral adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of Aurora¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin aurōra “dawn, dawn goddess,” east

Word History and Origins

Origin of Aurora¹

C14: from Latin: dawn; see _east

Example Sentences

In May, the centre closed, while the Aurora Project was paused.

From BBC

Neighboring campers, who included an obstetrician and other medical professionals, scrambled to tend to baby Aurora, who entered the world at a little over 3½ pounds.

From Los Angeles Times

County Arboretum, Villa Aurora and more as wildfires continue to damage or threaten cultural institutions across a vast expanse of Southern California.

From Los Angeles Times

The 1990s in particular were filled with reports of the US "Aurora" programme, said to be the next generation of very fast stealth aircraft.

From BBC

In April, a commercial driverless truck took to an American highway for the first time ever, operated by US-based tech firm Aurora.

From BBC

When To Use

What is an aurora?

An aurora is a natural light display in the sky that is caused by particles from the sun interacting with a planet’s magnetic field.The most well-known aurora is the aurora borealis, the shimmering display of colorful lights that sometimes appears in Earth’s Northern Hemisphere. The phenomenon is also commonly called the northern lights. The aurora that occurs in the Southern Hemisphere is called aurora australis or the southern lights. (The word borealis is Latin for boreal, which simply means “northern.” The word australis is Latin for austral, which simply means “southern.”)On Earth, auroras appear in many colors ranging from green and pink to red, yellow, and blue. Both the northern and southern versions can be called aurora polaris because they occur around Earth’s poles, but this term is not commonly used.Auroras are not exclusive to Earth and occur on every planet in our solar system except Mercury.