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MoBambaNYC OP t1_jau3qme wrote

Replying to sisment (#2,156,003)

Yup. The Kp really isn’t a good way to forecast the aurora as it’s a measure of previous activity. We like to look at solar wind speeds and the bz. When the BZ is negative with an elevated solar wind there will be aurora.

I’m an aurora guide in Alaska and have seen it every night I have gone looking for it this season. As long as the skies are clear and you can see stars you have a chance. Download the space weather live app

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shartillery82 t1_jau95oe wrote

One of many reasons I take psilocybin, I get the northern lights in Ohio.

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BoeingBoeing77 t1_jaujub9 wrote

I used to live in the North West Territories, saw a few beauties like this. If you get out of town and watch the lights, you can actually hear them…no joke.

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flingelsewhere t1_jaukbjx wrote

Having never seen the aurora in person myself, how would you compare your picture to seeing in person? Was it more/less visible?

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MoBambaNYC OP t1_jault6t wrote

Replying to flingelsewhere (#2,156,715)

On the average night your camera is gonna see it better, on a really strong night your eyes see it better. It has to do with the rods in our eyes at night we don’t see color really well unless it is bright. Think of driving down a dark road all the cars looks dark until your headlight hits it, then you can see the color. But you not seeing the colors well is an optical illusion of sorts because the camera is capturing what’s actually there. The flip side is on a bright night like this one, your eyes see it better because the camera can only absorb so much info to its sensor before it turns everything white, what we call blowing out. This particular night the reds were so vibrant from the super dense solar winds that Ray Charles could have seen them.

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BCGrog t1_jauphqp wrote

Beautiful photo thank you for posting this. Are you OK that I download it for a wallpaper?:

Spectacular!

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Fumblefunk_M t1_jauq4ws wrote

This makes me want to scream. In a good way, like our ancestors intended.

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david-bowies-buldge t1_jauwctq wrote

I just started a new job where I have to be up at 5/getting used to the new schedule and I am so mad I missed these!

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blackoutxxxxxxxx t1_jauzakb wrote

I was there, in Fairbanks. it was insane! feel so lucky to have seen it

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Time-to-go-home t1_jav0rob wrote

They were great on Sunday night. I got some photos of them directly above me. Not sure if I can post here because there’s no “earth” in the photo

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Pale-Flamingo2234 t1_jav6323 wrote

We’ve had some beauties in Alberta the last month but this shot is amazing ♥️

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satchel_of_ribs t1_javcbvu wrote

I want to see a good, proper, ribbon aurora sometime but the opportunities for them seem to always happen when it's either far to cloudy to see anything or when I have to go to bed early because of work. I got to see a small glimpse last sunday before I had to go to bed. First time I've ever seen it (that I can recall as mom is positive they've showed me it before).

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MetroidJunkie t1_javcm7w wrote

Well, Alaska, you are an odd fellow, but I must say, you steam a good ham.

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jinohop101 t1_javer1d wrote

Aurora Borealis?! At this time of year, at this time of day, in this part of the country, localized entirely within your kitchen?!

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Ruralraan t1_javhrj7 wrote

Replying to MoBambaNYC (#2,156,017)

Are they as vibrant so far up north as they look? We recently could see them here in northern Germany, but they weren't directly above us, but far away. They looked more like fog banks that twinkled sometimes far out at sea, and if you didn't know what to look for, you'd overlook them. They only looked a bit more colourful on photographes, and vibrant only when the photograph was reworked. To me in reality they didn't even look as greenish nor lilac as in the 2nd, non enhanced picture (yes the quality is bad, I shot it with a cellphone without tripod). But I heard the more north you go, the more vibrant the colors look.

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UT728 t1_javle1k wrote

All the radiation……it beautiful and scary at the same time…

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Redd575 t1_javn83c wrote

Replying to MoBambaNYC (#2,155,589)

Argh. I used to be up in Kodiak but I'm down in the continental US now. I follow the space weather forecast hoping for a decent CME to hit us on a clear night so I can finally see the aurora.

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GreenIce2022 t1_javtipw wrote

Replying to TACOSAREEPIC (#2,157,740)

I don't know if you've ever been in a planetarium, but sometimes there's like this odd, lasery space alien music. BoeingBoeing77 says you can hear them so I wondered if it sounded like laser space music (in a joking way).

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supermarkise t1_javzrt4 wrote

Replying to fe-fi-fo-throwaway (#2,158,094)

The bright ones absolutely are as bright as they look here on the picture. You'll have to be used to the low light levels, but I absolutely saw something like this image. It's much cooler in reality because the structure won't be as washed out and it'll be moving, sometimes really fast.

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MoBambaNYC OP t1_jaw38eb wrote

Replying to op_timus (#2,158,429)

You try to, typically an aurora shot on an average night is 3-5 seconds. When it starts moving around even less because you want to capture the motion and if you leave the shutter open it just turns into a blob of color. This specific photo the exposure time was 6/10th of a second, and I had to lower the whites and highlights considerably in post to keep them from blowing out. When the aurora gets this bright, it’s like pointing your camera at a full moon basically.

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MoBambaNYC OP t1_jaw3hvu wrote

Replying to reddog323 (#2,158,383)

That specific night there reds were really intense., probably the reddest I’ve see. This is caused by denser solar winds creating aurora at really high atmospheric levels. Usually below the reds is where the whites form, so often you’ll get all sorts of reds/pinks.

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grad1939 t1_jaw49ah wrote

Makes me hungry for steamed hams.

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eolai t1_jawaa2w wrote

Replying to MoBambaNYC (#2,156,017)

What counts as elevated for solar wind?

Every time I try to dig into aurora forecasts and reports, I just end up getting overwhelmed by all the different metrics. I wish one of the services would just do a "heads up, likely aurora tonight or tomorrow" notification, but instead it's all elevated Kp this and solar flare that.

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crankyape1534 t1_jawbysa wrote

Great photo. I imagine seeing this in person though is beyond amazing.

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AeonDisc t1_jawnm6y wrote

I'll never regret naming my daughter Aurora 😍

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BeardlessNeckbeard t1_jawvx3e wrote

Gotta ask OP, could you see colors with the naked eye?

I saw the northern lights for the first time this week. My camera could see the colors so well, but mostly looked white to the naked eye where I was! Sometimes a pale green.

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LSDREAMN t1_jawxrwo wrote

I envy you during such a wild time around the solar flares !! Gorgeous photo.

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jerrysburner t1_jawz9tg wrote

Is there a time of night, Alaska time, that is best to see Aurora?

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Ok_Cantaloupe8391 t1_jaxa5o8 wrote

Gods, the aurora borealis is one of the most beautiful things on earth. Amazing picture!

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Sora3582 t1_jaxf06e wrote

Heard if you take a picture with a special camera you can see a whole city up there

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master_redwit t1_jaxfo9n wrote

Hey just saw your post on r/EarthPorn. I am planning to Visit in late April. I saw that you are an Aurora Guide. Do you do personal tours too? Thanks :)

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extraxdx52 t1_jaxgl29 wrote

The bright ones absolutely are as bright as they look here on the picture. You'll have to be used to the low light levels, but I absolutely saw something like this image. It's much cooler in reality because the structure won't be as washed out and it'll be moving, sometimes really fast.

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MoBambaNYC OP t1_jaxvw3t wrote

Replying to eolai (#2,159,076)

Anything over 500 for solar wind speed. 20 density. It’s really not too complicated once you figure it out a little bit but at first all the scientific lingo can def be a bit overwhelming

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elevenhundred t1_jaxwbxc wrote

Replying to Tswiggle (#2,157,211)

I've worked as an Aurora guide. Be prepared for long nights, driving in the dark, not having a real social life, losing out on way too many days of skiing, and basically never seeing the sun.

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awowa99 t1_jaxyovg wrote

Wait I’m not over Alaska

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ApprovedSwag t1_jay9ia9 wrote

My son and I are planning a trip to Fairbanks just to see this. I’m just afraid that the conditions won’t be perfect to see it

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hikekorea t1_jaybdd1 wrote

Looks like Portage Lake. Beautiful shot!

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louderharderfaster t1_jaykkj0 wrote

I saw a brief AB moment last year just south of Portland. What stunned me more than the colors (silver, purple, pink and blue) was how it was shaped and moved like an entity - a cylinder with uniform flags rolling with it before it faded into a cloud. My SO had just died and he obsessed with night skies - I could not help thinking it was from him.

It may have been the most beautiful thing I have ever seen.

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