[aw-rawr-uh, aw-rohr-uh, uh-rawr-uh, uh-rohr-uh] 
for 2, 3. | 1. | the ancient Roman goddess of the dawn. Compare Eos. |
| 2. | (lowercase ) dawn. |
| 3. | (lowercase) Meteorology. 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. 158,588. |
| 5. | a city in NE Illinois. 81,293. |
| 6. | a female given name. |
| au·ro·ra (ə-rôr'ə, ə-rōr'ə) n. pl. au·ro·ras or au·ro·rae (ə-rôr'ē, ə-rōr'ē)
[Middle English, dawn, from Latin aurōra; see aus- in Indo-European roots.] au·ro'ral, au·ro're·an (-ē-ən) adj., au·ro'ral·ly adv. |
| au·ro·rae (ə-rôr'ē, ə-rōr'ē) n. A plural of aurora. |
| aurora (ə-rôr'ə) Pronunciation Key
Plural auroras or aurorae (ə-rôr'ē) 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. ◇ An aurora that occurs in southern latitudes is called an aurora australis (ô-strā'lĭs) or southern lights. When it occurs in northern latitudes it is called an aurora borealis (bôr'ē-āl'ĭs) or northern lights. See also magnetic storm. |