Northern Lights!

SawyerTed · October 10, 2024, 09:34:44 PM

It's not often that the Northern Lights are visible from NC. This weekend Mother Nature is showing her colors here.

Pretty but modest compared to what friends in the northern latitudes get to see with some regularity.
We will take them!

Jeff · October 10, 2024, 10:50:39 PM

We got them going on here too. They may get better, but I'm going to bed! Its cold. 24°f this morning

Dan_Shade · October 10, 2024, 11:02:42 PM

Here too. First for me

Ljohnsaw · October 11, 2024, 12:07:11 AM

Looking north, not so much.

Looking east, pretty good.

Looking north up through my unfinished roof.

twar · October 11, 2024, 03:02:58 AM

Just as facinating every time, also for us way up north!

thecfarm · October 11, 2024, 05:34:15 AM

They was here too!!!
But I missed them.
I was cutting wood.
The wife called me, but hard to hear the phone when the saw is running.

RetiredTech · October 11, 2024, 07:33:05 AM

No such sites here. Thanks for posting. Great photos.

Ianab · October 11, 2024, 08:26:58 AM

Just got back home from chasing the Southern Lights, which are not common this far North in NZ. Tonight was only faintly visible to the naked eye (which counts as "bright" here. But a modern camera pics up a lot more light than the eye can. It's after midnight local time, so I'll edit some pics in the morning, and get some from Lil's fancy phone camera.

Texas Ranger · October 11, 2024, 10:04:20 AM

south east texas viewed the norther lights, best thing to come out of the north in 150 years!

Jeff · October 11, 2024, 11:58:20 AM

Quote from: Texas Ranger on October 11, 2024, 10:04:20 AMsouth east texas viewed the norther lights, best thing to come out of the north in 150 years!

Um...

DDW_OR · October 11, 2024, 01:35:31 PM

https://spaceweather.com/

This has a lot of stuff
asteroids near earth
Northern Lights
comets
sun spots
???

Magicman · October 11, 2024, 02:05:07 PM

I shoulda stayed up late and gotten away from the city lights. My friend 20 miles away took some awesome "red" pictures last night.

I have to go to New Orleans this evening and will be heading North driving home quite late tonight. I have no idea whether there will be a repeat, but if there is, I may get lucky.

I have always felt that it would be something that I would never see.

aigheadish · October 11, 2024, 02:09:01 PM

I was notified at about 730p Dayton time that it was happening but I was asleep on the couch. I went out at about 1130p and didn't see anything. I'll be keeping an eye out though mostly around me is trees so I don't get a lot of far off views.

Is it in a specific direction? I assume north?

@Jeff got the good ones!

Ianab · October 11, 2024, 05:40:06 PM

Had a Saturday sleep in as it was after 1 am when we got to bed.

Picture taken from the ski field car park, so up above some of the low level haze.

And a more distinct band which was clearly naked eye visible. The little white streak is probably a Starlink sat moving during the 10 sec exposure.

Ianab · October 11, 2024, 06:27:54 PM

Quote from: aigheadish on October 11, 2024, 02:09:01 PMIs it in a specific direction? I assume north?

For you Nth American folks, yes look North, unless you are already way North, like Alaska or Canada, in which case just look up as the show will probably be overhead.

Best to get to a really dark place (away from town lights), with a view to the Northern horizon. Let your eyes adjust to the darkness for a while, and see if you can see anything. It may just be a faint pink fuzz in the sky, but a modern camera can capture MUCH more light than our eyes.

While we were parked up and taking pictures a family pulled up and parked nearby, but were disappointed that they couldn't see anything. Lil offered to show the kids the view from her phone, which was clearly picking up the show. It turned out the had identical S24 phones, and could switch them to night mode and take the same pictures. Anyway the kids got to see the lights, even if it was via a screen.

Local news site has pictures send in from around the Country, and of course the best ones were from the South Island. Were were at the North limit of seeing it, so we only got the red areas, which are just the top part of the Southern images.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/350449129/aurora-lights-skies-above-new-zealand

Ginger Squirrel · October 13, 2024, 12:42:47 AM

Had some nice ones here in northern Ontario, first time I ever see them be all around. Normally they are mostly north. I was at a friend's house and didn't have my good camera so took these when I got home and they were starting to die down but still got some good shots.

Peter Drouin · October 13, 2024, 09:17:02 AM

Quote from: Jeff on October 11, 2024, 11:58:20 AMUm...

Resonator · October 13, 2024, 01:56:57 PM

I've checked at night, but haven't seen them. Though friends just down the road from me have gotten pictures of them. They say if they're faint, and you take a picture with your phone, it will "see" them better than your eyes can, and get a great picture.

Best northern lights show I ever saw was back in the early 80's when I was kid camping in Canada with my family. My uncle was a "bush mechanic" for a logging crew, and knew all of the out of the way remote lakes and places to camp far from city lights. We picked wild blueberries the size of grapes and fished on the lake during the day, and at night watched an amazing light show of blues and greens across the sky.