STEVE in the sky with diamonds
It looks like an Aurora. It’s been confused with an Aurora. It’s only ever been seen alongside an Aurora but this strange phenomenon named STEVE (Strong Thermal Emission Velocity Enhancement) has key differences.
An aurora usually appears as green ribbons made by charged particles that glow. STEVE is a mauve or magenta streak across the sky created by hot glowing gas in the upper atmosphere.
There is a sweet story to how STEVE got his name…
Canadian aurora chasers were the first to dub the glowing spectacle "Steve." They took inspiration from the animals in the animated movie, "Over the Hedge", who named the mysterious hedge Steve so it would seem less scary. Researchers later reverse engineered the acronym STEVE (backronym) as a nod to the Alberta Aurora Chasers.
Image Courtesy Krista Trinder
The picture is a composite of 11 images stitched together.
STEVE (Strong Thermal Emission Velocity Enhancement) and the Milky Way at Childs Lake, Manitoba, Canada.