Northern Lights

Just wondering if many of you from southern minn and Iowa have had the pleasure of seeing the northern lights on your late night adventures. The last time was 3 years ago while duck hunting the early season @ lansing Iowa. We were camping and I thought I had over slept because It was so bright out…come to find out when bailing out of the tent the orange northern lights were dancing brilliantly…It was awesome..I miss it, and was just checking as to how early you all in these areas start to see the lights..Thanks

These are caused by large solar flares on the sun which sends ions into space. Some of these reach Earth and react to form light. The main factor is the amount of solar activity. The further north you are, the better viewing. There are better times of the year to view these, but this is mostly due to the sky conditions at these times of the year than any thing else. More can be found at these sites:

http://www.pfrr.alaska.edu/~pfrr/AURORA/INDEX.HTM

http://virtual.finland.fi/finfo/english/aurora_borealis.html

I think northern lights are actually more common than most people think. I see them relatively often in the early morning either duck hunting, coon hunting or just driving to work. I think you see them more either late fall or early spring. Just before daybreak the color can be extraordinary.

Gator Hunter

Night fishing in October on Mille Lacs is breathtaking! Some nights the n-lights get so intense we get completely distracted by them and the fishing takes the back seat for a bit. A couple years back I was out with customers during a pretty major meteor shower on a night when the n-lights were really awesome. Talk about a moment when a person felt EXTREMELY insignificant and privledged to be a witness to such an amazing spectacle…!

To the Big Guy….

A couple small bands of the lights were seen out at my dad’s place late Saturday night. They didn’t last long and there was moving cloud cover.

I’ve witnessed these throughout the year but it does seem that fall and spring are more condusive to the frequency of spotting them.

James……………..I couldn’t agree with you more! It’s special indeed and all words fall short of truly describing the feelings it can create inside. To “The Big Guy”!

Winter Northern Lights over Lake Vermilion-SPECTACULAR!!!

One of the great things in this sport is to be on one of the big lakes way up north ice-fishing at night. On a clear night – – what a sky!

We saw some spectacular Lights on Elephant Lake in September of 2000. Really breathtaking. A big to the Big Guy Upstairs. When I get to work tomorrow, I will see if I can get a picture from Alaska to upload. It is absolutely gorgeous.

Well, better late than never for uploading the picture!

Wow!!!!!!!

Awesome pic Greg.

Gator Hunter

That is an absolutely fantastic picture. Incredible!!!!

Great pic! Breathtaking! Ummm/……………..But is this the pic of the lights you saw during the early season duck hunt? In Iowa? That you mentioned at the beginning of the post? Or did I miss something? Couldn’t help but notice the snowbanks and conifers……………..

The picture looks like it is around the Fairbanks area in Jan. or Feb. I was up there awhile back, it is amazing. Seems like you can reach out and touch them.

completely amazing!! How can anyone think we are here by random chance.

As Greg posted earlier this paticular N.Light pic was taken in Alaska. That is a beautiful pic. If it was minus the truck, I believe that it would be my screen saver. If there are others minus the truck I would love to see them. Also just once I would like to be the person snaping the picture. You WOULD have to be able to feel; being in a place and moment like that, that you were very close to god. Beautiful…..I try to take moments when I am with my children, and in the outdoors, to take an extra deep breath and take in the beauty that is missed by so many.

There’s an interesting article in the MN Outdoor News this week about the Northern and Southern Lights and how they get there color. I thought I was seeing things a couple years ago in Fergus Falls MN a couple years ago for deer opener Friday night when they were red. It was a first for ever seeing anything but green. It was pretty awesome.

Ferny.

From my memory, I believe here in Iowa the color is usually orange. Is there a color spectrum change the futher north and south we are..Just Interested. Thanks

I’m not sure what determines the color or if the region has any effect on it. It would seem odd to think that the angle of observation would change anything. But I can say that it seems more common to see blueish greens when they’re lower on the horizon. Over head has been the same to darker blue, scarlets and purples, oranges and reds…………all over my home town. No idea about your question but this is what I’ve seen here.

Color is determined by atmospheric content & distance (just like, for instance, a sunset).

Saw on CNN headline news that large outburst of solar wind is expected to arrive tomorrow. May have night light show.