Types of Aurora

Types of Aurora

by kevin-palmerNo Comments
The aurora borealis takes many forms, and every single display is different. Time of night, solar wind speed, magnetic field strength, moonlight, and many other factors influence how it looks. The northern lights also appear different depending on who is watching. The more stargazing experience someone has, and the younger their eyes are, the more details they will see. It's also important to remember that cameras will always see more colors than the human eye does. Cameras can take long exposures, while our brains cannot. If you chase auroras long enough, these are some of the different types you might expect to see. Curtains In the Arctic, auroral curtains are very common. Stripes of green, purple, or red swirl across the sky. These shapes change rapidly and can quickly morph into other types of aurora. Arc Auroral arcs are not the most exciting type of aurora. That's because they are constrained to the northern horizon and don't show very much movement. But when...
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Guide to Seeing the Aurora in Greenland

by kevin-palmerNo Comments
Greenland is a place unlike anywhere else. The world's largest island is bigger than Alaska. Yet 80% of it is covered in an ice sheet and uninhabitable. Only 56,583 people live here, giving it a population density of 0.1/sq mi. Towering mountains rise straight out of the sea among uncountable rocky islands. Some of the deepest fjords in the world stretch inland. And the purest water on Earth flows straight out of the glaciers. Icebergs are a constant presence on the coast. Stretching from a latitude of 60° all the way up to 83°, Greenland lies completely within the auroral oval. Virtually anywhere is a great place to see the celestial phenomenon. Compared with its neighbor Iceland, clear skies are much easier to come by. Well off the beaten path, Greenland should be on every adventure traveler's list. As a territory of Denmark, Greenland uses the Danish Krone and speaks Danish in addition to Greenlandic. Icebergs stranded on a beach in...
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Guide to Seeing the Aurora in Sweden

Guide to Seeing the Aurora in Sweden

by kevin-palmerNo Comments
Located in the far north of Sweden at a latitude of 68 degrees, Abisko is arguably the best spot for aurora viewing in all of Europe. But it is less popular than Iceland or Tromsø, Norway. While I wouldn't call it cheap, Sweden is certainly less expensive than the aforementioned countries. There are never any guarantees, but the microclimate around Abisko gives a higher likelihood of clear skies than other places in Scandinavia. I had a chance to visit in March of 2019. Of the 6 nights I spent there, it was clear enough to see the aurora on 4 of those nights. Even when the KP index was only 1, the lights were still very active. I'm writing this article for others who may want to plan a visit to this special place. Getting Here Considering how far north it is, Abisko is surprisingly accessible. The nearest larger city is Kiruna, with a population of 18,000. The airport there is served by Norwegian...
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Personal Aurora Sightings

by kevin-palmerNo Comments
  It was 2010 when I first became interested in seeing the aurora as the sun was coming out of solar minimum. After discovering Spaceweather.com, it's been one of my favorite websites ever since. October of 2011 is when I saw the aurora for the very first time. From that point on, I was hooked and became an aurora chaser. If the weather is clear and the aurora is out, then so am I. Until 2016 I lived in Illinois (both northern and central). The light pollution and the latitude (40° - 42° north) made sightings more difficult. But in 2016 I moved to northern Wyoming. The slightly higher latitude (45° north) as well as easier access to dark skies made aurora watching a lot easier. Over the years I sometimes drive north to Montana or Michigan for even better views. I've also been lucky to visit high latitudes such as Iceland and Arctic Sweden, where the northern lights are out almost any...
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10 Best Places in the World To See the Aurora

10 Best Places in the World To See the Aurora

by kevin-palmerNo Comments
/*! elementor - v3.10.2 - 29-01-2023 */ .elementor-column .elementor-spacer-inner{height:var(--spacer-size)}.e-con{--container-widget-width:100%}.e-con-inner>.elementor-widget-spacer,.e-con>.elementor-widget-spacer{width:var(--container-widget-width,var(--spacer-size));--align-self:var(--container-widget-align-self,initial);--flex-shrink:0}.e-con-inner>.elementor-widget-spacer>.elementor-widget-container,.e-con-inner>.elementor-widget-spacer>.elementor-widget-container>.elementor-spacer,.e-con>.elementor-widget-spacer>.elementor-widget-container,.e-con>.elementor-widget-spacer>.elementor-widget-container>.elementor-spacer{height:100%}.e-con-inner>.elementor-widget-spacer>.elementor-widget-container>.elementor-spacer>.elementor-spacer-inner,.e-con>.elementor-widget-spacer>.elementor-widget-container>.elementor-spacer>.elementor-spacer-inner{height:var(--container-widget-height,var(--spacer-size))} If it's your dream to see the aurora in person, then you can't do better than to visit one of these places. All the locations listed (except for #10), are situated underneath the auroral oval. This means that the aurora may be visible on any clear night, even when solar activity is very low. Most locations experience the midnight sun in the summer, which is to be avoided if your goal is to see the northern lights. In the Arctic regions, aurora season generally lasts from late August to early April. The middle of winter experiences the longest nights (sometimes for a month at a time). This may increase your odds of seeing the lights, but you also have to consider the weather. Winter is often stormier and cloudier, and of course temperatures are at their coldest. If you want to combine a northern lights trip with activities that you can do during the...
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Aurora Stats and Averages

Aurora Stats and Averages

by kevin-palmerNo Comments
[Updated January 2024]Climatologists study records of Earth's weather to calculate averages and find trends and patterns.I wanted to do the same with space weather to find out how geomagnetic activity varies by year, month, and day. The British Geological Survey (BGS) has been keeping records of geomagnetic activity since 1932. So I imported this 92 years worth of data into a spreadsheet to analyze it, and break it down into graphs and charts. The Royal Observatory of Belgium - SILSO has been recording sunspot numbers for even longer since the 1700's. The effects of the solar cycle become clear in the first 6 graphs below.What is the Solar Cycle?For centuries it has been known that the sun follows a regular pattern of high and low solar activity. This period averages 11 years in length, but can vary from 9 to 13 years long. Solar maximum is defined as the month with the highest sunspot number. Conversely, solar minimum is defined as the month with...
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KP Index Explained

KP Index Explained

by kevin-palmer Comment Closed
Open full screen map The Kp-index is a scale used to characterize the magnitude of geomagnetic disturbances. A geomagnetic storm starts at Kp5 after which the G-scale is also used. Kp0 = Quiet Kp1 = Quiet Kp2 = Quiet Kp3 = Unsettled Kp4 = Active Kp5 = Minor storm (G1) Kp6 = Moderate storm (G2) Kp7 = Strong storm (G3) Kp8 = Severe storm (G4) Kp9 = Extreme storm (G5) Magnetometers measure the strength of Earth's magnetic field to determine the K-index, which is tied to a specific station. The Kp-index is calculated by combining the data from multiple magnetic observatories around the world to determine the global planetary index.  See the current Kp-index on the Live Data page. The map above shows you what the Kp-index needs to be to see the aurora overhead at a given location. Generally once the Kp-index reaches a certain threshold it will fill the northern half of the sky (in the northern hemisphere) all the way up...
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How to See the Aurora

How to See the Aurora

by kevin-palmerNo Comments
I recommend reading the What Causes the Aurora post first. Seeing the aurora is simply a matter of being in the right place at the right time. But how do you know where and when to go? What sort of conditions should you be looking for? Live Data The Kp-index is one of the easiest measurements of the aurora to use because it boils all the geomagnetic data down to a simple number from 0-9. On the KP Index Explained page, you can find the minimum Kp number that needs to be reached before you'll see the aurora at a given location. Once you know this number, you can start watching the live data and looking for an increase in geomagnetic activity. At the bottom of that page you can see any watches or warnings that are in effect. The "Text Forecast" tab shows a 3-day and 27-day forecast of geomagnetic activity. You can also sign up for email alerts from NOAA, so you're not caught...
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How to Photograph the Aurora

How to Photograph the Aurora

by kevin-palmerNo Comments
There are 2 reasons to photograph the aurora. The first is the same reason you'd photograph anything amazing, to preserve the memory and share with others. But the 2nd reason is the northern lights show up much clearer in a picture than they do to the naked eye. This is because a camera can take a long exposure, and the photons from the aurora will accumulate on the sensor, increasing their brightness. The human eye is very limited in what it can see at night. Colors especially are very washed out, but they will show up much better with a long exposure on a camera. Sometimes you may be unable to tell if you are looking at the aurora or something else, but you can use a camera to confirm what you're seeing. So how do you capture the aurora borealis? Keep reading to find out. Required Gear: A camera with manual controls (a DSLR or other large sensor camera is...
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What Causes the Aurora

What Causes the Aurora

by kevin-palmer Comment Closed
Before learning how to see the aurora, first it helps to know where they come from. To understand what causes the aurora first you must know a bit about the sun. The Sun The sun hangs in space 150 million kilometers away from Earth. A ball of hot plasma 1.4 million kilometers wide, it's internal convective currents generate a magnetic field. It rotates on it's axis about once every 27 days. But the equatorial region of the sun rotates faster, while the poles rotate slower. It is this differential rotation that winds up and twists the internal magnetic field into complex loops. These loops emerge above the surface of the sun (the photosphere) as sunspots. Sunspots are easy to observe with either an inexpensive solar filter or by projecting them onto a surface. The outer atmosphere of the sun is known as the corona. It extends millions of kilometers into space. For reasons scientists do not understand, the corona is about 450 times hotter...
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