STEVE may be even less like typical auroras than scientists thought
Horizontal green streaks that often appear in the sky glow can’t be formed by electron showers
![STEVE sky glow](https://i0.wp.com/www.sciencenews.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/110920_ee_steve_feat.jpg?fit=1030%2C580&ssl=1)
The sky glow known as STEVE is a cousin to the auroras. Its bright smear of purple is formed by a torrent of charged particles rushing across the atmosphere. That plasma heats surrounding air particles to make them glow purple.
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, courtesy of Krista Trinder