In Maine, vision testing is required at the first renewal after driver's 40th birthday, then at every second renewal until age 62, and thereafter at every renewal. In Oregon, vision testing is required every 8 years for drivers 50 and older. In Illinois and New Hampshire, applicants 75 and older must take a road test.
Bottom line: When charged particles from the sun strike atoms in Earthâs atmosphere, they cause electrons in the atoms to move to a higher-energy state. When the electrons drop back to a lower energy state, they release a photon: light. This process creates the beautiful aurora, or northern lights.
What are the northern lights? Polar lights (aurora polaris) are a natural phenomenon found in both the northern and southern hemispheres that can be truly awe inspiring. Northern lights are also called by their scientific name, aurora borealis, and southern lights are called aurora australis. Sten Odenwald, author of The 23rd cycle, learning to live with a stormy star (New York, Columbia University Press, c2001), provides insight to how northern lights are formed: