aurora aus·tra·lis

(ô-strā′lĭs)

n. pl. aurora aus·tra·lis·es (-lĭ-sĭz) or aurorae australis

An aurora that occurs in southern regions of the earth. Also called southern lights.

[New Latin aurōra austrālis : Latin aurōra, dawn + Latin austrālis, southern.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

aurora australis

(ɒˈstreɪlɪs)

(Physical Geography) (sometimes capital) the aurora seen around the South Pole. Also called: southern lights

[New Latin: southern aurora]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

auro′ra aus•tra′lis

(ɔˈstreɪ lɪs)
n.

the aurora of the Southern Hemisphere. Also called southern lights.

[1735–45; < New Latin: southern aurora; see austral¹]

aurora aus·tra·lis

(ô-strā′lĭs)

An aurora that occurs in southern regions of the Earth. Also called southern lights.

The American Heritage® Student Science Dictionary, Second Edition. Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun

aurora australis - the aurora of the southern hemisphere

southern lights

aurora - an atmospheric phenomenon consisting of bands of light caused by charged solar particles following the earth's magnetic lines of force

Translations

Südlicht

aurora australis

n (Astron) → südliches Polarlicht, Südlicht nt

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

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References in periodicals archive

The aim of the project, which is the first solar array providing power to an Australian Antarctic research station, is to reduce the reliance on diesel fuel, which is delivered yearly by the AAD's Antarctic icebreaker, the Aurora Australis, from Hobart, Tasmania -- a journey of 3,443km.

Masdar installs solar panel system at AAD station

The Marine Benthos Program on Voyage 5 (BRAD) 1996/97 by Research Survey Vessel Aurora Australis aimed to quantify the abundance and diversity of benthic macroinvertebrates on different sediment types in four areas of Prydz Bay (Bardsley 1997).

Notes on the Ascidian component of a Marine Benthos survey in Australian Antarctic Territory

They wanted to learn more about how changes in the speed, density and temperature of solar wind affect atmospheric conditions on earth -- specifically how they create and shape aurora borealis and aurora australis, the northern and southern lights.

'Zombie' comeback

If the lights are near the North Pole, it is called aurora borealis and if they are near the South Pole, it is called aurora australis. Some people refer to them simply as the Northern Lights or the Southern Lights.

The Largest Solar Flare In A Decade

Known as aurora borealis, or the Northern Lights, in the northernhemisphere, they go by aurora australis, or the Southern Lights, in the southern hemisphere.

Spectacular Northern Light display illuminates Finnish sky

Canberra: The southern most points of Australia and New Zealand have been treated to an extraordinary spectacle as unusually colourful Aurora Australis lights swept across the skies.

'Huge naked-eye beams': Spectacular Aurora Australis lights up the southern skies

Airline passengers bound for the Antarctic Circle couldn't help but gawk at the Aurora Australis, which put on a spectacular show last Friday.

WATCH: Passengers film Southern Lights across Antarctic Circle

I also enjoyed reading about auroras and was pleased to see the inclusion of a short paragraph about the Aurora Australis as it is often neglected in favour of the well known Northern Lights.

Morey, Allan: The Science Behind Wonders of the Sky: Auroras, Moonbows, and St. Elmo's Fire

The resulting magnificent light show, visible in both Northern and Southern hemispheres, is called aurora borealis in the north and aurora australis in the south.

Stories of the Aurora: Dot to Dot in the Sky series