Half-sky auroras - 13.3.2022 at 20.10 - 13.3.2022 at 21.00 Kurikka Observation number 105082

Copyright © 2022 Marko Myllyniemi. All rights reserved.

Visibility IV / V

Marko Myllyniemi, Lakeuden Ursa

I was watching the final of the snooker Turkish Open on TV while thinking about checking the space weather on the phone. The K-indices looked red, so it was a must to put on a jacket and go outside to see the situation with your own eyes. And there were quite bright northern lights in the sky flaring, then there was a hurry to get a camera and a tripod.

Because the repos wobbled over my head, I chose an 8mm fisheye lens, which was a great choice for such a wide-ranging play. The camera is in the B position and with the remote control at a fairly steady pace on the principle of estimation (the shortest times at the very beginning should be in the order of about 3 seconds, and as the northern lights dim towards the end, the shutter speed increased to about 7-15 seconds).

It's a bit annoying that you can't put ten pictures in it, so you had to do a qualifier. First, a few pictures of the early stages of the observation, a few of the mid-term ones, and a couple of the final stages of the observation.

This description has been automatically translated from Finnish. Click here to see the original text.

0 1

Additional information

Aurora brightness
- Bright auroras
Observed aurora forms
- Arc
  
  ARC The arcs are wider than the bands and do not fold as strongly. The arcs are normally neither very bright nor active.
  
  The arc is probably the most common form of aurora. When aurora show is a calm arc in the low northern sky it often doesn’t evolve to anything more during night. In more active shows the arc is often the first form to appear and the last to disappear.
  
  The lower edge of the arc is usually sharp but the upper edge can gradually blend into the background sky. As activity increases rays and folds normally develop, and the arcs turn gradually into bands.
  
  An aurora arc runs across the picture. Vertical shapes are rays. Photo by Atacan Ergin.
  
  Aurora Arc. Photo by Mauri Korpi.
  
  Aurora Arc. Photo by Anna-Liisa Sarajärvi.
  
  Aurora Arc. Photo by Matti Asumalahti.
- Corona
  
  CoronaA corona is a hand fan shaped structure, it usually forms south of the observer's zenith, most commonly consisting of rays or bands. The corona is usually the most beautiful part of the aurora show. It is bright and active, but on the other hand also short-lived.
  
  Aurora corona. Photo by Anna-Liisa Sarajärvi.
  
  Aurora corona. Photo by Merja Ruotsalainen.
  
  Corona formed from bands. Photo by Markku Ruonala.
  
  Aurora corona. Photo by Tapio Koski.
- Band
  
  Bands are usually narrower, more twisty at the bottom, brighter, and more active than arches. Bands usually develop from arches.
  
  Bands can form J and U shapes, sometimes even full spirals. The corona can also arise from bands. Bands are a fairly common form of aurora.
  
  Aurora band. Photo by Merja Ruotsalainen.
  
  Aurora band. Photo by Matias Takala.
  
  Aurora band. Photo by Lea Rahtu-Korpela.
  
  Aurora bands. Photo by Lauri Koivuluoma.
  
  Aurora band. Photo by Matias Takala.
- Rays
  
  The raysare parallel to the lines of force of the magnetic field, i.e. quite vertical, usually less than one degree thick light streaks. The rays can occur alone or in connection with other shapes, mainly with arcs and bands. Short rays are usually brightest at the bottom but dim quickly. The longest rays, even extending almost from the horizon to the zenith, are usually uniformly bright and quite calm, and unlike the shorter rays, most often occur in groups of a few rays or alone. Rays, like bands, are a very typical form of aurora.
  
  Artificial light pillars, which are a halo phenomenon visible in ice mist, can sometimes be very similar to the rays of aurora. Confusion is possible especially when the lamps that cause the artificial light pillars are far away and not visible behind buildings or the forest. The nature of the phenomenon is clear at least from the photographs.
  
  Rays. Picture of Tom Eklund.
  
  Rays. Photo by Mika Puurula.
  
  Two beams rise from the aurora veil. Photo by Anssi Mäntylä.
  
  Two radial bands. Show Jani Lauanne.
  
  Radial band and veil. Photo by Jussi Alanenpää.
  
  Two rays. Photo by Aki Taavitsainen.
  
  It may be possible to confuse such rays with artificial light columns. Compare the image below. Picture of Tom Eklund.
  
  There is no aurora in this image, but all the light poles - including the wide and diffuse bar seen at the top left - are artificial light pillars born of ice mist. Photo by Sami Jumppanen.
  
  Aurora and artificial light pillars. All the radial shapes in the picture above are probably artificial light pillars that coincide appropriately with the aurora band. In the image below, the aurora band has shifted and does not overlap with the pillars produced by the orange bulbs. There is no orange in auroras. Photo by Katariina Roiha
- Veil
  
  Veil
  Veil is the most bland and very common form of aurora. It usually covers its homogeneous dim glow over a wide area of the sky at once. Most often, the veil is seen in the calmer and quiet phase of the night after the aurora maximum as a background for other forms. The veil can also occur alone and in that case it will be quite difficult to reliably identify as an aurora, especially at a observation site which has a lot of light pollution.
  
  A similar glow of light can also be caused by airborne moisture, smoke, or a very thin layer of clouds that reflects the light that hits them. However, clouds can also be used to identify veil, especially if the middle or upper cloud appears dark against a lighter background, then it is very likely to be aurora veil if the brightness of the background sky is not due to the rising or falling Moon or Sun. When photographing, very long exposure times usually reveal the green colour of the veil auroras.
  
  Veil and rays. Photo by Esa Palmi.
  
  Red aurora veil. Photo by Marko Mikkilä.
  
  Veil. Photo by Milla Myllymaa.
  
  Aurora veil that changes color from green at the lower edge through purple to blue at the top. Photo by Jaakko Hatanpää.
  
  Dim green veil. Photo by Jarmo Leskinen.
  
  Radial aurora band surrounded by veil. Photo by Jussi Alanenpää.

Colors with unaided eye and other features
- Green auroras
  
  Green, seen with the naked eye, is one the most common colors of the aurora. The green color is derived from atomic oxygen.
  
  Green auroras. Lea Rahtu-Korpela.
  
  Green auroras. Photo by Juha Ojanperä.
- Red coloration of the shapes top
  
  Auroras which have red top part that can be seen with naked eye are most often observed in the bands and long rays. In this case the lower parts are usually green. If the upper parts are in sunlight, red may be stronger than green. This shade of red is due to the discharge of the excitation state of the atomic oxygen.
  
  Aurora that shift to reddish towards the top. Photo by Karri Pasanen.
  
  Red top in a aurora band. Photo by Simo Aikioniemi.
  
  Red at the top of the aurora. Picture of Tom Eklund.
- Flaming auroras
  
  Flaming. This rare subclass of aurora does not mean so much a single shape, but a large area in the sky. In the flaming aurora, bright waves that are sweeping upward towards the magnetic zenith emerge in the sky. Very rarely waves can wipe downwards. Bands are usually reported during flaming, less often spots.
- Violet auroras
  
  Usually in Lapland or even in the south you can see purple auroras in stronger aurora shows. The most common color in auroras along with green and red.

Technical information

Canon EOS 70D, Samyang CS 8mm fisheye

Comments: 4 pcs

Vesa Puistovaara - 14.3.2022 at 00.33

Hieno harrastus, myös snooker, varsinkin penkiltä katsoen - mutta, todella hyvää kuvamateriaalia! Kannatti viettää hetki myös ulkona tästä näytöksestä nauttien :)

Marko Myllyniemi - 14.3.2022 at 09.09

Ei ole montaa syytä, miksi finaalista jäisi osa katsomatta, mutta kunnon revontulet on aina sellainen! Ei niitä nyt turhan usein kuitenkaan näy niin, että ehtisi ihastelemaankin.

Kaj Höglund - 14.3.2022 at 11.01

Kiva havaintokertomus ja hienot kuvat!

Marko Myllyniemi - 16.3.2022 at 10.37

Kiitos! Toivottavasti vielä tälle keväälle saataisiin yhtä upeat reposet ennen vaaleita yötaivaita.

Send a comment

Comments are checked and moderated before publication If you want to contact the observer directly about possibilities to use these images, use the Media -form.

Desktop version of the site Show the mobile version
Site development by the Skywarden team and E. Bruus.
© 2011- 2023 Ursa Astronomical Association. All rights reserved.
Privacy policy