The sky was quiet tonight. Although the first aurora appeared just after dark, it was largely immobile - or in the words of one of our Aussie mates here, "Nothing but smudgy smudges." Then, at about 1 am, after most of us had given up and gone to bed, the sky exploded. For half an hour or so, the lights danced across the sky in a brilliant, shimmering display. The lights moved so quickly, in fact, that they were hard to capture. Then, abruptly, it ended, and the rest of the night held nothing but "smudgy smudges."
Who knows why the lights can burst into action so suddenly, and just as suddenly melt away. But it makes predictions, and photography, a challenge.
Tonight is our last night here after a stunning week of nightly aurora. It has been the best, most consistent, viewing (and weather) I've ever had in all my years of aurora-chasing. No, we have not had any of the rare, and sought-after, red auroras or even much besides green - but I'm not complaining. We'll save that for next time.
Nikon D3, 28mm f1.4 lens, 1000 ISO
No comments:
Post a Comment