Northern Lights – Around the Clock

Possibly the most spectacular fireworks, the northern light baffles the lucky visitor. Perhaps an everyday thing among northerners, the Aurora Borealis sometimes even impresses the local people. It is also an important source of myth and folklore.

What is Aurora Borealis? Eruptions on the Sun propel winds of electrically charged electrons and protons into space. A few days and the particles reach the atmosphere of the Earth. When they collide with gas molecules such as nitrogen, oxygen and hydrogen in The Earth’s magnetic fields some 100 km above ground the light show starts.

Depending on various factors such as the gas, the energy of the particles, time of the day, location, height and other, we get to see different colors and shapes of the Northern light.

It is best to see the northern lights between 6 and 10 pm in October - March at 67 to 75 degrees north. Look for cloudless nights.

September 2011