aurora australis

noun

aurora aus·​tra·​lis -ȯ-ˈstrā-ləs 

-ä-ˈstrā-

: an aurora that occurs in earth's southern hemisphere

called also southern lights

Examples of aurora australis in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

While the northern lights often steal the spotlight, their southern counterpart—aurora australis—offers an equally dazzling display of its own. —Evie Carrick, Travel + Leisure, 6 July 2025

The relative lack of landmass in the southerly regions of the Southern Hemisphere makes the aurora australis generally more difficult to see than the Northern Lights. —Jamie Carter, Forbes.com, 25 June 2025

Outside North America, both aurora borealis and aurora australis were seen in abundance. —Jamie Carter, Forbes.com, 3 June 2025

This light is observed as the northern lights, or aurora borealis, in the Northern Hemisphere, and the southern lights, or aurora australis, in the Southern Hemisphere. —Daisy Dobrijevic, Space.com, 1 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, literally, southern dawn

First Known Use

circa 1734, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for aurora australis

• bailies
• dailies
• israelis

Kids Definition

aurora australis

noun

aurora aus·​tra·​lis -ȯ-ˈstrā-ləs 

-ä-ˈstrā-

: a display of light that is the same as the aurora borealis but occurs in the southern hemisphere

called also southern lights