Better Times are Just Around the Bend
This Photo was the result of a Bucket List Item requested by the Mrs., so it went right to the top of my to-do calendar; and three years later here we are ;-)
We flew into Fairbanks and spent three icy-cold nights looking for the Northern Lights with the “Aurora Chasers,” a Husband and Wife team (located in Fairbanks) dedicated to helping find and photograph those Beautiful Lights in the Alaska Night sky. It was definitely worth the wearing of two pair of long-johns and two coats and still freezing my tail off.
The northern lights, or aurora borealis, are beautiful dancing ribbons of light that have captivated people for millennia. But for all its beauty, this spectacular light show is a rather violent event.
The northern lights are created when energized particles from the sun slam into Earth's upper atmosphere at speeds of up to 45 million mph (72 million kph), but our planet's magnetic field protects us from the onslaught.
As Earth's magnetic field redirects the particles toward the poles — there are southern lights, too — the dramatic process transforms into a cinematic atmospheric phenomenon that dazzles and fascinates scientists and skywatchers alike.
(Nikon Z8, 20/1.8, 1/3 sec @ f/1.8, ISO 3200, edited to taste)
Better Times are Just Around the Bend
This Photo was the result of a Bucket List Item requested by the Mrs., so it went right to the top of my to-do calendar; and three years later here we are ;-)
We flew into Fairbanks and spent three icy-cold nights looking for the Northern Lights with the “Aurora Chasers,” a Husband and Wife team (located in Fairbanks) dedicated to helping find and photograph those Beautiful Lights in the Alaska Night sky. It was definitely worth the wearing of two pair of long-johns and two coats and still freezing my tail off.
The northern lights, or aurora borealis, are beautiful dancing ribbons of light that have captivated people for millennia. But for all its beauty, this spectacular light show is a rather violent event.
The northern lights are created when energized particles from the sun slam into Earth's upper atmosphere at speeds of up to 45 million mph (72 million kph), but our planet's magnetic field protects us from the onslaught.
As Earth's magnetic field redirects the particles toward the poles — there are southern lights, too — the dramatic process transforms into a cinematic atmospheric phenomenon that dazzles and fascinates scientists and skywatchers alike.
(Nikon Z8, 20/1.8, 1/3 sec @ f/1.8, ISO 3200, edited to taste)