Isar Aerospace’s Spectrum rocket on the launch pad at Andøya Spaceport in northern Norway. (Image credit: Isar Aerospace)

A gorgeous new photo shows the northern lights rippling across the night sky above Isar Aerospace’s Spectrum rocket.

first rocket to reach orbit from European soil.

crash spectacularly less than a minute later. Still, Isar hailed the test flight as a success.

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While the first flight carried no payloads, this second flight, which Isar has named “Onward and Upward,” will attempt to put five cubesats and one scientific experiment in orbit.

northern lights, or aurora borealis. This stunning phenomenon occurs when charged particles from the sun collide with atmospheric gases like oxygen and nitrogen in Earth’s atmosphere, exciting the atoms in these gases and releasing energy in the form of light.

Earth’s magnetic field funnels charged particles from the sun towards the poles, making arctic locations like Norway’s Andøya Spaceport prime locations for viewing the northern lights.

Isar Aerospace shared this photo on March 18, close to the March 20 spring equinox for the Northern Hemisphere. Earth’s tilt during equinoxes orients the planet’s magnetic field in such a way that it strengthens auroras at these times.