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Auroral activity in Alaska has greatly increased over the past couple of years. 

A gaseous solar flare erupts on the sun.  Charged gas molecules crash into the magnetized poles of the earth producing ten million megawatts of electrical power. As a result, a halo of light circles the north and south polar regions. From the surface of the earth, this halo appears as dancing sheets of vertical lights.  Colors of the northern lights range from a misty white to every color of the rainbow.

Alaska astronomer Jan Curtis is my premier choice for aurora photographs.  His Alaska northern lights photos are so outstanding they appear on the NASA web site, and the Astronomy Picture of the Day for November 2, 1999, is Curtis's Aurora Through a Moonlit Sky. 

Watch an Aurora Borealis Movie (556K)

Aurora Photography - when shooting is not a crime

• Jan Curtis shoots an Image of Comet Hale-Bopp against the northern lights. | mirror site.
• Dick Hutchinson combines thirteen two-second exposures in his animated aurora gif which creates the illusion of a movie. Another aurora gif consists of thirty-five three-second exposures.  Hutchison, who lives in Circle, Alaska, shares his experience with shooting the aurora.
• Mark Chryson's Northern Lights Photos from Web Alaska.  You'll have a whole page of thumbnail photos to choose from.
• Earth's Great Light Show, an introduction to the Northern Lights with photos of the aurora taken from the space shuttle.
• Crackshot Photos including photos taken by Jeff M. of Fairbanks, Alaska.
• Auroras Now!, Sodankyla Geophysical Observatory auroral photos.  This page is in Finnish, but the photos are in English. ;)
• Jyrki Manninen Aurora Borealis - Northern Lights shots taken during field measurement campaigns.
• Aurora Movie - 200K looking directly overhead and was made from 36 2 second exposures on 35mm film.
• Aurora Movies taken from the International Space Station Expedition.

Aurora Frequently Asked Questions FAQ

• Aurora Basics provided by the Poker Flat Research Range, the world's only scientific rocket launching facility owned by a university, located thirty miles north of Fairbanks.
• Space and Astronomy, NASA Athena Curriculum Space
  • What is an aurora?
  • Where can the aurora be seen?
  • What causes the aurora?
  • What factors influence the brightness of the northern lights?
  • Why are there different colors in the aurora?
  • Is there a connection between sunspots on the Sun and large displays of aurora?
  • What is the "solar wind" made of?
  • Do other planets have aurora?
  • How long have there been northern lights?

Aurora Links

• Marilyn Morgan's book Alaska Alphabet has a chapter called N is for the Northern Lights written with preschool and elementary school children in mind.
• Auroras: Paintings in the Sky, answer your questions with an illustrated self-guided tour.
• Rocket Scientist, Neal Brown, explains the aurora at Alaska Science Explained.
  • Bibliography, an aurora borealis suggested reading list.
  • Aurora Milestones a timeline of research about the aurora borealis.
• Auroras Dancing in the Night, explains where the auroral light comes from.
• Legends and Folklore of the Northern Lights including a story in The Labrador Eskimo reported by Ernest W. Hawkes.
• The Aurorae (Borealis and Australis) the interaction of a stream of particles from the Sun with the Earth's atmosphere including an aurora animation.
• Surprising gap in aurora borealis puzzles scientists including an aurora webcam updated every seven minutes!
• Space Chronicles #12 about the aurora written by ISS Science Officer Don Pettit.
• Aurora Forecast sign up for the mailing list to receive aurora alerts.

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