Space scientists say unusual lights in the sky, known as the northern lights, are more likely to appear because of intense activity on the sun.

太空科学家表示，由于太阳的强烈活动，天空中出现的不寻常光（称为北极光）的可能性更大。

The cause is the 11-year solar cycle. During a period of about 11 years, the sun's activity changes. The U.S. space agency, NASA, says changes in the sun's magnetic field cause the activity, which can result in sunspots.

原因是11年的太阳周期。在大约11年的时间里，太阳的活动会发生变化。美国航天局NASA表示，太阳磁场的变化会导致太阳活动，从而导致太阳黑子。

Strong storms on the sun this year have created these "lights" in the sky called auroras. They look like moving waves of color filling the skies similar to what happens as dawn nears. Now, space scientists say these "light shows" are likely to be seen much farther south than usual.

今年太阳上的强风暴在天空中产生了这些称为极光的“光”。它们看起来就像充满天空的移动彩色波浪，类似于黎明临近时发生的情况。现在，太空科学家表示，这些“光秀”可能会在比平时更南边的地方看到。

The colors in the sky that people might see may be pink, purple, green or blue. The auroras are called the northern lights because they can usually only be seen in areas in the extreme north of the world near the Arctic Circle.

人们可能看到的天空颜色可能是粉色、紫色、绿色或蓝色。极光被称为北极光，因为它们通常只能在地球极北靠近北极圈的地区看到。

Space scientists who observe the sun through a special telescope can sometimes see darker places, called sunspots. The sunspots are areas where magnetic fields are stronger than in other places on the sun, NASA says.

通过特殊望远镜观察太阳的太空科学家有时可以看到较暗的地方，称为太阳黑子。NASA表示，太阳黑子是磁场比太阳其他地方更强的区域。

The energy released from the interaction of these magnetic fields may cause a flare, a bright spot, which is an explosion of radiation from the sun. It shows up as a flash of light to observers.

这些磁场相互作用释放的能量可能会导致耀斑——一个亮点，即太阳辐射的爆发。对于观察者来说，它表现为一道闪光。

Sometimes a large amount of solar material shoots away from the sun. This is called a coronal mass ejection, and it results in a geomagnetic storm when it arrives at the Earth.

有时，大量的太阳物质从太阳射出。这被称为日冕物质抛射，当它到达地球时会导致地磁风暴。

The sun is currently at the highest part of its 11-year cycle, making solar flares and northern lights more common. NASA and the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, known as NOAA, say they expect this active period to last for at least another year. But they will not know until months later when solar activity was at its highest.

太阳目前处于11年周期的最高点，这使得太阳耀斑和北极光更为常见。NASA和美国国家海洋和大气管理局（NOAA）表示，他们预计这一活跃期至少将再持续一年。但他们要到几个月后才知道太阳活动何时达到最高水平。

Kelly Korreck studies the stream of particles that come from the sun called the solar wind. Korreck led a project to develop an instrument to study the solar wind that was on NASA's Parker Solar Probe that got close to the sun in 2021.

凯利·科雷克研究来自太阳的粒子流，称为太阳风。科雷克领导了一个项目，开发一种用于研究太阳风的仪器，该仪器位于NASA帕克太阳探测器上，该探测器于2021年接近太阳。

The Parker Solar probe collected material and measured magnetic activity on the sun. Korreck said this solar cycle has provided more colorful auroras farther south and even more are likely. "We still could possibly get some good shows in the next few months," she added.

帕克太阳探测器收集了材料并测量了太阳的磁活动。科雷克说，这个太阳周期在更南的地方提供了更多丰富多彩的极光，甚至可能还会有更多。“在接下来的几个月里，我们仍然有可能看到一些好的现象，”她补充道。

Solar storms are powerful. They can temporarily disrupt electricity service and communications on Earth. NOAA follows space weather and warns operators of power stations and spacecraft in orbit.

太阳风暴非常强大。它们可以暂时中断地球上的电力服务和通信。NOAA关注太空天气并警告轨道上发电站和航天器的操作员。

In May, NOAA issued a rare severe geomagnetic storm warning. The radiation from the storm that arrived on Earth was the strongest in more than 20 years. It produced northern lights that people could see in many places in the Northern Hemisphere. That same month, scientists recorded the biggest flare erupting from the sun, but Earth was not in its path.

五月，NOAA发布了罕见的严重地磁风暴警告。抵达地球的风暴辐射是20多年来最强的。它产生了人们在北半球许多地方都可以看到的北极光。同月，科学家记录到太阳喷发的最大耀斑，但地球并没有阻挡它的路径。

Earlier solar cycles have produced storms more intense than the one in May. Bill Murtagh is the Program Coordinator for the Space Weather Prediction Center at NOAA. He said space weather experts are keeping a close watch on the sun to prepare for any major problems.

早期的太阳周期产生的风暴比五月份的风暴更强烈。比尔·穆塔夫是NOAA空间天气预测中心的项目协调员。他说，太空气象专家正在密切关注太阳，为任何重大问题做好准备。

Recently, a powerful solar storm gave those watching the sky a beautiful show far from the Arctic Circle. People could see auroras in Germany, Britain, and also in New England and New York City.

最近，一场强大的太阳风暴给远离北极圈观看天空的人们带来了一场美丽的表演。人们可以在德国、英国以及新英格兰和纽约市看到极光。

I'm Jill Robbins.

吉尔·罗宾斯为您播报。