When I flew from Canada back to Europe I flew right through the Northen Lights. We were flighing at night. I was almost asleep but woke up because I saw some green lights. To my surprise it were the real Northern Lights. Suddenly all the passengers were awake & enjoyed this 'show'. I went for 6months to Canada (close to the border of Alaska) but never actually saw the Northern Lights. This was the best flight ever. 🙀😻 🌌
It is sped up because it is not a video. 99% of the people make timelapses and not a video. You need a very very very expensive camera to make a video of the northernlights.
I went to Iceland last year and missed it, I stayed with a friend and we went out to see it but no luck. But, of course the day I go home the lights were out in force and I missed it.
@@sp33d90 but how come it happens when there's no sun in both poles? I suspect the sun is behind this phenomenon it could be the magnetic charges but definitely has nothing to do with the sun and certainly has many things to do with magnetic, air pressure and ice.
I can confirm all of this as well. I went to Iceland about a year ago with the sole purpose of seeing the Northern Lights and didn't know what to expect. When the display is weak, it is underwhelming and you're straining to distinguish between whether it's a cloud or the Aurora Borealis. However, as he describes, when it's a strong display and you get lucky, there's no mistaking it. It's truly breathtaking and bright, with the Aurora quite literally dancing above you. 10/10 highly recommend...and if you're reading this with plans to go on a similar adventure, please dress super warm. You're going to be out in the arctic night for hours most likely.
@@analourenco5739 The trip I'm referring to in the comment was 9 days and I saw them once, but the show was super intense (rare experience). As I recall I didn't try to go out every night and search for them during that trip though...which is what you need to be doing. I did just finish another Iceland adventure a few days ago. This time the trip was 2 weeks and I saw the lights 5 times. 3 of those weren't very powerful displays and didn't last very long...like I could see them but they were faint and the lights weren't "dancing" a whole lot. The other two were pretty strong displays and lasted for hours, really cool to see but still nothing as intense as my first experience. There aren't any guarantees at all no matter how long you go, but your statistical likelihood of seeing them is certainly higher if you're trying for longer. I recommend minimum 5 days, but ideally 1.5 to 2 weeks. If you're there for 2 weeks and constantly trying to go out when the forecast is looking good and you still don't see them...you've gotten incredibly unlucky. A really strong display I think is pretty rare so I wouldn't get your hopes up too much for something super intense...you may go and see them like I did quite a few times but none are crazy bright or fast. It's still really cool even if you don't get that experience. Remember: Dark skies (away from big city lights), clear skies or partly cloudy (if the forecast shows cloud cover everywhere you won't see them), kp index 2 and up, ideally during New Moon (no moon visible in the sky), enough hours of darkness (sometime in April is the cutoff for Northern Lights viewing), check the auroral oval to see when it's over you, and have patience and dress warm!
@@jeremylevy7801 Yeah man. I’m definitely going out every night just to see if I get lucky, crossing my fingers that I could catch it cause the weather forecast seems shaky for the time I’ll be there from what I seen (usually cloudy with light rain or snow) but then again from what I’ve read weather in Iceland can be quite unpredictable so we’ll see. I hope I’m lucky lmao
I love watching the Aurora’s. I live interior Alaska, and I see them all the time. It’s amazing how cool they look when they dance across the night sky.
@@glennlavalle9807 all the time?? I’m in jersey and had no idea it was common in the US at all. We’re they pretty crazy yesterday? Apparently I might be able to see them slightly here
as a kid in the faroe islands i witnessed the northern lights at an extreme, it was late in fall and it had gotten to the colder point of the year, the entire sky was alive, it was like a Raging ocean of polychromatic lights more colorful than a rainbow and brighter than a full moon! it looked so apocalyptic we were in awe and legitimately afraid. i have not seen it like that ever since and this was about 15-20 years ago
I saw them in Banff, Canada, in may 2017 and it WAS EXACTLY as in the pictures. The sky was totally green. I think it was one of the strongest solar storm in the last 10 years, stage 5. I cried like a baby because I had never seen anything more spectacular than that.
That’s incredible! Were the lights above you or were they out to the north? I’ve been researching bad for Banff to try to find out more information about viewing the northern lights from there but it’s hard to find information. Most of the pictures look like the lights are off to the north in the distance but still really beautiful!!
Back in August 1966, my mother woke my brother and I from a sound sleep around 2 am. She wanted to show us something incredible. We trailed after her outside to see what had her all excited. When we arrived in our backyard, we looked up. It was like we were in a giant cathedral with drapes and streamers of light flickering from thousands of feet high. Above the mountains surrounding our valley, more curtains of light snapped and rippled. The lights were mostly greenish but there some faint signs of magenta as well. It was a sight that I have never forgotten.
I just saw the northern lights for the first time on my grandparents farm. It was insanely beautiful, even if it just lasted for a few minutes and wasn’t the strongest. My Grandma just passed away, and today is the last night staying with the family I flew up to visit. We think that the lights were her, in one way or another♥️
I have been in Iceland last September and got to watch the Northern Lights. After 10 years of dreaming to see the lights, I was disappointed beyond belief, its almost as if my heart was crushed. There was a whitish grey haze like a cloud stretching across the sky, which was stunning in the pictures with long exposure. But the second day, there was a powerful solar storm (Kp>5) and there was a good show with mild greenish white, purple lights dancing across the sky. Yes that was beautiful and I was awestruck, but still cant compare with the pictures. So go with moderate expectations, hoping for a good solar storm, else prepare for a white haze. Also, some people's eyes are real sensitive to colors, they can see them a bit brighter than others. Anyway am a happy man! Tip: Try not looking into your mobile phones or other artificial light sources for sometime as the eyes need to adjust to the darkness to see the northern light colors more vividly.
Thank you for this! Every time I've tried to look for what the Northern Lights look like on UA-cam, it's a timelapse. I wanted to know what they look like when you're actually standing there looking at them. I appreciate you breaking this down into the actual experience and stages.
I've had the privilege of seeing some amazing northern lights. Way in northern Minnesota on the Canadian border, they were green and blue and white and yellow. Swirling around and dancing in the sky. I was in the boundary waters canoe area. We were doing some nighttime canoeing. It was something I'll remember for the rest of my life! Incredibly mesmerizing.
I loved seeing the northern lights when i lived in minnesota. My parents forced me to go to church at 5am before school every single day in highschool. The days i saw the Northern lights from the window are about all i remember from those mornings. Im not a morning person at all, but the excitement of seeing the Northern Lights always woke me right up.
I’ve been very fortunate to have seen the Northern Lights in both Tromsø and Iceland. But I am very aware of how lucky I am because they are such fickle things! My recommendation for anyone planning a trip to see the Northern Lights is to make sure your trip is not all about seeing the Northern Lights. Go somewhere where there are other things to do and see. Because then if you go all that way and don’t see them, you’ll still have had a great trip. Think of the Northern Lights as a bonus to your holiday.
Living in North sweden and I have probably seen the Northern lights a thousands of times. Still it sometimes can make me amazed with shapes, speed and colours. Many even among us that lives up here doesn't know that it makes a sound. You have to be very far away from civilization and without disturbing sounds to hear it. It is many years since I heard it now even thou I live 17km away from a city and that is because I live by the river and the rapids water sound. I have made some time lapses from my property.
Thanks for sharing your experience. This March I went to Tromso in Norway and I saw the Northern lights, it was amazing, almost like a religious experience. I remeber I heard somthing but I was not sure, now I know what I heard is real.
@@chomtso this Saturday we were up at North Cape in Norway, my wife have not been there before so she had it on her bucket list but I was there in 2012. Anyway... Back home it had been a huge northern light....up there in North Cape I didn't see anything of it when I was out walking the dogs at night. seems like one can be to far north sometimes. :)
I just watched the Northern lights in my home state of Maine. Stayed up all night watching them during the solar storm last seek. I had tears streaming down my face, i couldn't believe what I was looking at. It was pulsing and rippling across the sky. There were huge pickets in a ring area, but the boundaries were where the really incredible stuff was happening. I can't find any videos anywhere that compare to what I saw with my own eyes. It was rapidly popping in and out of existence like a strobe light, but im the pattern of ripples on a pond of if you rubbed your eyes really hard. The bright parts were beautiful, but the very faded parts that were going nuts were glorious.
Last week, I saw the best northern lights of my life in central MN (just an hour north of Minneapolis). They were easily stage 4 described in this video. However, instead of undulating ribbons of light, the sky was like a concert, with pink strobes covering the whole sky. The reds were also the deepest reds I’ve seen, easily visible to my naked eye. The storm that caused this amazing show ranked as a G4 (kp8) severe geomagnetic storm, the strongest storm since 2017. Even still, I didn’t expect to see such a surreal show this far south.
Very informative! I didn't know that. I've seen them once as a teen in Quebec. Around the fire at camp and out of nowhere it was like the sky exploded into a giant red wave. Got so lucky because it wasn't off in the distance or anything, in the gap of trees that was our camp site it took up the whole sky right above my head. Lasted a few minutes and then disappeared. Greatest moment of my life!
When I was seven, my family vacationed at Four Winds Resort in Marquette, Michigan U.S. The second night we were there we could fully see the Milky Way. The next night an Aurora appeared. 1977 turned out to be a record year for the distance south it appeared. I think I heard in 2023, the Aurora Borealis will be seen in the Northern U.S again as well as parts of England and Germany, and Mongolia and Northern China.
They can be seen in Minnesota,. Wisconsin, Michigan and others still. True they're not as often as they were a few years ago, but I have seen them several times just an hour north of Minneapolis.
Last night was absolutely incredible in northern Minnesota. I've heard many saying it was the best show in decades. It lasted for hours, dancing green and purple curtains and pillars brilliantly visible to the naked eye from the horizon all the way to directly overhead. Happened to be a clear, cold, still night with virtually no moon, yet it was almost as bright out as being underneath a full moon. I'm only about 8 hours from it right now and it's a night I'll never forget.
Hi it's 2023 now and let me tell you, last Sunday there was a spectacular Northern Lights show in the U.S but I'm just so unlucky that clouds covered our view.
Thank you for breaking it down! I saw a stage 1 in Maryland close to a year ago. It was grey and looked like a haze but I could see these weird slow wavy movements sway here and there. It was amazing. It could've been a higher stage and I just couldn't see the color. But I definitely could see what looked like wispy clouds swaying back and forth 😯❤️
I live in canada and it is beautiful. You can whistle at while the northern lights and it will come down towards you literally. I was told growing up not to disturb them very much.
It's nice tio meet you, friend. Thank you so much for sharing! I've seen the first stage but had not gotten to see the whole show yet! It is amazing to watch in your video. Thank you for explaining the different stages. I hope you have a wonderful weekend!
I lived in Grande Prairie, Alberta, Canada for several years. Northern Lights visible there frequently. You don't have to go to Norway or somewhere in the Arctic to see them.
THANK YOU. You are 100% correct! A camera can catch a show that your eye can't really see. What is a light gray "cloud" to your eye becomes a green sky to your camera. GREAT INFORMATION!!! We are going to Alaska next month to try to see a bigger and better show! (The best so far have been in Alta, Norway, and Tromsø, Norway.). :-)
I just seen the northern lights just now! I was disappointed at first because you can’t see it on naked eye then as we are on our way home the northern lights showed as what we see in the videos!! I was stunned! It was so amazing!
We had the same experienced when we didn't see them at first but decided to take a photo. After when we looked through pics in our camera, to our surprise it captured the aurora when the naked eye couldn't see them. But as time passed by, we saw them with our eyes.
I spent a month in Norway driving from Oslo to Bergen and then Lofoten. It’s very different to how it’s projected on Instagram and social media. It really was a big disappointment, especially Lofoten. I found the weather to be very oppressive and the scenery although dramatic, quite bleak and dark....I couldn’t wait to leave after a month. Plus the cost of everything is crazy. I then spent a month in Sweden, in the time I was in the Arctic circle I didn’t see the northern lights once.
Very helpful! Some videos I have seen were obvious timelapses, but others made me wonder whether this was something that really "danced" in real-time before one's naked eye. Now I see that it can range from just "wispy slightly luminous 'clouds'" all the way to dancing streams that are readily seen.
I went to Fairbanks Alaska four years ago, and I experienced level one. I was a little disappointed because it was not what I expected, but honestly this video gave me hope to try again and hopefully be able to experience level four someday :)
Hi we r from Massachusetts U.S.A. I want to THANK YOU for making this video. Since we have been able to see the lights in October we have been taking pics and seeing faint results in pur pictures. With you braking it up into stages , this helps alot it matches the pics we have. The cloud that goes strait up in stage one we have it in a picture. Hundreds doubt us but now your video is proof we have been seeing them. Thank you so much
two days ago i had the exact same experience; you described mine perfectly....at first i wasnt sure if i was looking at cloud coverage or the dust from the lights...but if you turned around, and looked south, i was easy to tell you were looking at the dust - because there were no clouds in teh sky for miles!!!! we were on top of the cruise ship deck, looking into what could only be described as "a blurry window, out of earth into space." it was not much longer after that first wtf is this cloud moment, we saw the other stages develop......light takes 8 mins to go from sun to earth you have to watch for a good hour to see as much as you can.....we saw light coming up from behind the mountains, some in streaks, some in paintbrush looking strokes, some in l-r waves, and then the dancing above you was insane.....great video to sum up the exact feelings the 4 of us lucky ones had at 2 am lol
I have been fortunate enough to see all 4 stages. Stages 1 to 3 Ive seen quite a few times, but stage 4, just once. It was around 2am and I was looking out because I got an aurora watch notification. I went out my deck and there it was, beautiful dancing above my head, looked like a dragon dancing in the sky. I ran inside to wake my husband up, i felt like a child on Christmas morning. I still remember the date May 28, 2017. This was in Southern Canada.
I feel so very blessed to have seen every type of Northern light one could EVER see...I ve seen all the swirls and dancing ,I ve had them create a cathedral of shandalere shards in a complete circle around where I stood they came down to literaly the tops of the trees and whistles and snapped and popped like a musical radio static ...and I've seen popsicle fucsia pink lights ...I ve seen them Sian the entire sky Scape of a valley I lived in creating I swear to god a grid of light seriously like a net across the valley and it went for miles as we drove just vefir mount Robsin right into the Robsin valley that dunster and McBride reside ...very SERIEL... I genuinely felt as thou I had a personal relationship with them... I recall Calli g a friend once when they created a full circle like a cathedral arou d where I stood and danced down to the tree tops and were singing ...it terrified my friend she could not be there with me and literally drove away ,went home and inside??? I could not understand it ...I haven't witnessed them in such majesty for many years now..people say you have to be out of city limits ,not true atall ..for many of my mom at spectacular events I was in town in Prince George B.C ...I can't believe so many folks have never seen them ...I ve also just learnt they tend to come around in seven year intervals . I had taken it personally when I hadn't seen them for years...✨💓✨
Way down in New England we had a magenta pink sky very vivid auroras lasted for an hour, we all stood outside watching it not realizing it was x ray radiation! Fifteen minutes later we all had a bad headache and side effects from THE CME that caused the beautiful sky 18 years ago.
We lived in Fairbanks Alaska for almost 15 years and the Aurora has a cycle of 11 years. During the on years they would be bright and green over our house. On the off years there were none.
This year’s (2022) February I was in Russia’s Murmansk. I especially visited Russia just to watch northern lights. Though it was a full moon night but we were good enough lucky to watch weak but beautiful northern lights. We went for two consecutive nights for aurora hunting. It was an incredible dream that came true. Earlier in 2019 too I booked a package for Russia for the same cause but Corona ruined it. I tell everyone if you haven’t seen aurora borealis your life is not worthy 😅. I will never ever forget that day of my life. In fact if ever I would get chance will again visit any of the countries where I can watch it❤ . This is something which nature has provided us to feel that we are alive✨
I totally agree with you!! It was disappointed twice . I saw northern lights but I was expecting things like they show in pictures ... But it is always a light cloud. But sometimes it can be very intense as well. Very lucky you saw them
My family and I were on a plane back from Iceland. We were all asleep when the plane undergone some slight turbulence. Due to the turbulence, I opened my eyes to check the window. Well, I was SURPISED because I saw a green snake-like light slowly dancing through the window. I immediately woke my family up and told them that the Northern Lights appeared through the plane’s window! I took videos and photos of the beautiful natural phenomena. My family were in awe. I shed some tears of joy, hugged my mom, and appreciated that moment. I hugged my dad and brother too. Seeing the Northern Lights was one of my bucketlist, and we were lucky and blessed to have seen it from the airplane window. It was indeed a dream come true. I hope to see it again from the ground. I love the Northern Lights.
@@frankyfrink7135 it looks the same as the one in this video! However, the video's description is right. The Northern Lights does not look as "bright" in your naked eye compared to your cameras. Maybe it depends on how strong the energy particles are but based on my experience, it looked more shiny and bright through my camera. However, you could still see the aurora slowly swaying with your naked eye.
...and then you have "stage 5" where you think you are dreaming or looking at a movie. The light from the Aurora can be so powerful and bright that it even makes shadows. And it can move fast, I even seen it "flashes" like there is a spot that lights up for a fractions of a second.... But that stage seldom happens and is short lived. So if you are not at the right spot or the sky is clear, you miss it. By the way I live in this area and have seen a lot of Aurora in my lifetime. Most of the time it is as you say, just a faint green/grey mist over the sky. Did you know there is actually Aurora Borealis activity even in the daytime. But that is of course not visible to our eyes.
Good video for those who have not seen them yet. It's true that they are not like in pictures, but in my opinion, they are more cool in naked eye. It's allways amazing experience when the lights appear, you never know how they move or how bright they will be. It's exiting. I live in southern finland and have seen the lights about 20 times in a year. They are not so cool here in the south but still nice. Still havent seen them on top of my head. Hopefully soon in future.
I have seen them many times from Quebec and Ontario Canada. Most often the looked like gray, thin clouds that would seem to appear and then just fade away. In fact, the first few times I saw them, I didn't think that's what they were, but thought it was very strange behavior for "clouds". It wasn't until on one occasion the gray "clouds" turned shades of green and began moving that I realized I had been seeing the northern lights all those times.
Very true!!!! But it's an out of the world experience to watch with your naked eye. I visited Tromso in the month of February.. It was just a 3 day schedule but we were were lucky enough to get to see the lights within 30 minutes of our arrival to the camp. It was just mind blowing. And with a bonus of moon rise after an hr just speechless.Nature has so much within!!!!!
live in southern vermont usa, about 12 years ago, i got too see an explosive show, red overhead with spokes like on a wheel, was truly awesome, seen a lot of northern lights up here in last 24 years, but mostly weaker displays, the one that was red was seen as far south as texas, !! clear skies:), p.s , it takes a lot of time and patience when trying too see the northern lights, years too finally see that big one!!
I saw them like that where I live (Northern USA) in 2001. Never seen anything like it before or since. Went to Alaska for a week a few years ago, expecting something like what I saw in 2001 and saw NOTHING.
I remember in 2001 or 02 seeing them in Northern MD near the PA border. There were red, green and white streaks and curtains in the Northern sky. Must have been a strong solar event to have seen them that far South.
Jeez, maybe it was that storm in 2000 or 2001, lol time goes by fast the older I get, it only lasted for about 10 to 20 minutes of the explosive part of that night, and I read that people seen it as far south as Texas, I'm sure I've missed some really cool ones in the last almost 26 years I've been in vt, but like black bear's, I see they are around my house on a regular basis but never seen one yet !! Lol, it's the same with the northern lights I think, you have too be lucky enough just to have been looking that way at what might only be really visible for a very short period of time 🤔
This is so true. I went to Iceland to see the northern lights and was not prepared for this. What I saw with my eyes was barely visible but through my camera they looked awesome. It was still a fantastic experience but nothing like the photos you see online
Some 30 years ago I saw aurora borealis in Somerset, UK. There were reports the next day of how they had been most visible in Cornwall. I did not know to begin with what I was seeing and it was quite unnerving but hypnotic. Toweringly tall purple curtains were just wafting, as if slo-mo, in the dark sky for a few minutes. Astonishing and beautiful and very memorable.
Large thank you for providing category in respect to northern light intensity, its something ive been wanting to do for a while, but now i will not bother. My favorites are ofcourse three and four.
I have seen spectacular Northern Lights in the sky over a small Northern Pennsylvania, US town one cold, clear November night. Being that the light had travelled so far South, we could only see what appeared to be sheer, red curtains wafting in the breeze. They were everywhere, all over the sky, and lasted for a long time. It was a spellbinding display; one I’ll not ever forget. I’d love to travel to Norway someday, and see the Aurora in its green & purple colour phases.
Thank you! I went to see the Northern Lights about 10 years ago and only saw grey clouds dancing in the sky but took spectacular pictures with my camera. I came home and researched on the internet if you could see colors with the naked eye! If so, I would try to see them again. If not, then I saw what I could.
I went to Rovaniemi, Finland to see the aurora and I kept being told I wouldn't really he able to see them with my naked eyes or probably even my phone's camera (if they appeared at all. It was cloudy at the first place we stopped at) When we tried our last stop, everyone else was busy with their fancy cameras and I was just staring at the sky -hoping.- I saw these little white wisps at first and I honestly figured it was smoke from the campfire, but then off to the right theu started kicking up and while they were the big wide bands that cross the whole sky, they were visible enough for all of us to absolutely freak out, and I got phone pictures without too much issueaside from the general phones-hate-space-pictures issue.
I live in northern Alberta in Canada - we had two huge displays of it this week. The photos we got were just like we saw with our eyes it was that bright. And 10 seconds is too long for the exposure - if you want to get nice streaks keep it between 3-6 seconds max.
The most beautiful Northern Lights I have seen is when I was traveling in Arctic Sweden in 2018 summer. There is even no actual nights in summer Arctic. I watched the northern light in the time call Nautical Twilight. During nautical twilight there is still some sunlight in the sky. But the northern light is just so bright so we can see them dancing in the sky even with little sunlight. Even an outdated mobile phone camera can take pictures of these northern lights. Sadly I forgot to bring my SONY camera to take better quality pictures. It is still really amazing and I won't forget the view in my life.
Kameko Miyamora for that money u can book a flight ticket to russia and u can see it from murmansk nd u can join in tour group or u can see it by yourself nd it will b a great trip tooo .... im sure it will cost u within 2 k dollar
Too many people are not aware of the fact that specific cameras are needed to record good pics or footage. IR and UV filters need removed from the camera sensors and you can get so much better footage that needs a good degree of post production to make it look like something you actually saw.
Thank you sooo much for doing this. I live in Indiana ...no lights at all. Anything that shows up on your videos is more than I have. Thank you for taking your time out of your life to do this for us. Thank you! 🥳
Well, watching Aurora is really a matter of luck. I went to Yellowknife of Canada in December 2017 to watch it. It was damn good as the dancing Aurora with numerous colours, according to the guide, was the most intensive one the guide had ever seen. That trip took me 5 nights staying in the small town, but only the 3rd night had such an amazing display, all other nights were only a thin shade of green in the sky
Saw them on a nighttime ferry ride from Juneau to Sitka way back in 1983. About 10 pm someone yelled out "The lights are out, the lights are out!" Everyone ran to the top deck and for the next 2 hours we all watched, completely captivated! They changed intensity and size as our ferry changed its direction according to our course. It was the highlight of my first trip to Alaska. (This was in late September btw.)
Thank you so much for your video. We are in Narvik and already gave up the idea of seeing the Northern Lights. When we went out with our dogs at 22:00, we saw the grey stripes that transformed into solid green - only because of your video, we were aware what the grey strips were.
Good and truthful video. Guys I live in Norway and went to Tromso for a bunch of days to experience the arctic and the northern lights. The city is full of different agencies offering tours to ''chase them'' out of light pollution. Each of these tours costs around 100-140 euros per person. They assured us we would have seen them, despite the very low activity predicted on the Aurora Forecast. Well, what we got was a team of well-equipped photographers taking pictures of a grey small cloud that was slightly moving in the sky. Nothing more than this visible with our eyes. What I mean by this comment is: do not trust these agencies if the activity predicted is so low (you can check yourself with an APP). Northern lights in Tromso are a business and even if one time they would have not started the tour had the activity been so low now mass tourism is just too big and they will try to take as much money from tourists. My advice is: check if there is going to be good activity at the time you are there and then decide whether to buy one of the tours to get out of the city. PS: the ''guide'' is often a professional ph who asks you if you want a portrait with the Aurora just to be later asked 30 bucks for the mere file of the photo. Be aware!
hi Jan thanks for showing this video because I was going to plan to visit Norway to try hard because that is not easy for me to travel too expansive tour .... there is no values of money against life nature and time... internet and TV shows different if I came and looking around sky that may be heartbroken to me but when they got pics like coloured sky
I saw them last night, 10/5/24 from central England, apparently they were visible all over the UK. They were spectacular! That's what brought me here..all the best bro 🤙
Saw them in Iceland for the first time about a month ago, very underwhelmed, just a grey wispiness that could have been cloud, my photos show the colours that the eye wasn't able to pick out, they were a No1 on your scale.
I just saw them a few hours ago...they were spectacullar...the sky exploded in whiteish turquise and it was flickering and dancing on all the sky. It was kp 5. If the activity is strong enough they are really beautiful.
All I do is read about the Aurora. I obsessively look up pictures. I paint them. I dream about them. One night I dreamed that I was night swimming. I went under water and went down deep in it's blackness. When I started to come up to the surface again I could see the Aurora from under the water, glowing and dancing. What looked like a heavenly melted candy, a liquid rainbow, met my eyes as I emerged from the water. I was completely spellbound, and I wish this had not been a dream. But it was. I hope someday it will come true.
Absolutely beautiful! The truth is that there’s water above the Firmament and the northern lights dance across it. Those lights are pure energy emanating from the center of the Earth. Oh, and where you (the REAL you) go in your dreams is infinitely closer to truth than this physical realm that you experience. Pretty much when you wake up in your bed in the morning, you’re essentially back in the real dreamland. “Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily, life is but a dream...” 😊
When I saw the Northern lights it was in may in North Dakota. I had just moved there and it was my first night.it was beautiful. Multi colors going from the ground up. It was breath taking. I had seen the lights several times that year, but it was not the same. The other times was like lightning rolling a crossed the sky. Still nice to watch, but not near as breathing taking and beautiful.
I've lived in Tromsø and worked as a northern lights guide and it's not fair that you just confirm that "northern lights are not what they show you on pictures" based on a 5 day experience... I've seen the aurora with my naked eye some nights that it could just light up an entire fjord in green and purple from how strong it was and I can 100% guarantee that you can see what you see on pictures. The problem is that people expect to go and see amazing northern lights as if it was something you can turn on, but they are literally solar plasma... So depending on the amount of plasma that reaches earth, they will be stronger or weaker... It is such a variable phenomenon that you shouldn't definitely claim it is not what you expect from that short experience cause it will just ruin some other dreams of seeing something they can actually see, just don't take for granted that you'll see them 10/10 and value the fact that what you are seeing is coming from the f*ckin sun!!
I was thinking the same. But then, is it even worth traveling all the way to the north for couple of days? I mean how frequent are the auroras? I would love to see these one day, but I dont think spending 3 days somewhere gives me any decent chance..
Thanks for your info, i live in the Caribbean and im planning on taking a trip..What is the best time of year to travel to Tromso and how long a visit to experience the Northern Lights in all its glory?
Yes, Good storms can bring in moderate greenish purple/white curtains of light, but do not expect them be the same as in pictures or videos. Our eyes are not evolved to see colors vividly at night, so always go with moderate expectations, and if the solar storm is low, you can expect to see a greyish white haze across the sky which will ofcourse be stunning in pictures with long exposure.
@@glennlavalle9807 I'm still kicking myself for not taking the trip from when I lived up Bar HARBOR and now I don't think I will ever get that chance again I could cry , mother nature and our earth is going through so much and who knows what will be next that we start to loose ,just look at the ice glacers the 1 that broke off and was headed for land...wow was that à hard wait to see what direction it was going to take...
Having just experienced this in London, this video is spot on and helpful. At 8pm yesterday I was only able to see very weak patches of red with my eye, but was capturing a moderate aurora with my phone camera. But at 10pm, I was amazed to go outside and clearly see a pinkish/red aurora in the sky with fainter green around it. That was a life experience and to have experienced it from my own back garden without freezing myself in the arctic was cool.
very accurate - excellent video, photo, visual and descriptive points! as with everything astronomical, there are better nights and conditions for seeing than others. i was fortunate enough to be stationed in keflavik iceland for the winter, and we were spoiled by incedible displays, but not every night, and i'm sure we missed many awesome displays due to weather. but that one or two experiences of the 'stage 4' aurora as you describe, makes the journey and experience well worth it! great video!
This was so helpful!! I took some photos in the upper peninsula of Michigan tonight because we got a “Geo storm warning”…I got so excited (FL girl) and my photos looked like them but I didn’t see the same thing. Of course I was expecting the green and purple crazy sky but I’m glad I did actually see them thanks to your explanation
Usually it happens when it's dark enough to see it. As early as late august. And it happens alot. It starts of as a haze. And that's the solar storm itself. Then that collides with the upper atmosphere and the colors explode
They happen most often every 11 years. When the Sun hits solar Maximum, we are heading into the next Solar Maximum so the next 2-3 years should be good! I live in Canada and see them all the time. But always lots more when we are in solar max
@@snehaacharya8021 no idea how to send pictures via UA-cam 😜 but if I could í would although they are only taken with my phone, they are still worth seeing
yes the "disco" moment is called substorm, usually you have one big one per night, usally between 11pm and 12am. Usually it lasts 5 min, but can last up to 1 hour if you are very lucky. Since it is unpredicatable, you have to be ready for it, waiting in the car for hours sometimes :)
100% correct. I visited Lapland in Dec'17 and saw white colors moving in the sky one evening when I was walking all alone. Till now I was confused if it was someone just flashing a torch in the sky from somewhere in the hills. But I guess after seeing you describe stage 1 exactly as I witnessed, I shall now be able to pacify myself that it was actually the Northern lights. Haha! On another night I saw a faint green line in the sky. This time there were people around me who also got excited so I was certain this was definitely it. However I was disappointed with how faint it looked with the naked eye. We saw another guy setup his camera on a tripod and take a pic, and that came out so bright and amazing. That's when I realised what we see on the internet is far far far away from what we will see in reality. He was kind enough to take a pic of my wife and me and email it to us. In that it looks a nice bright green and will remain our memory of the norther lights. I'm surely going back to one of the Scandinavian countries in the winter and hope to see stage 4 atleast once.
This was one of the best simple and accurate explanation I have ever come across, your video needs more views! I love that you had really good video and pictures to go with everything!
I’ ve seen one up in the Yukon in Canada. It looked like a whitish band of clouds initially. We were like, that was it? Is this the Northern lights we were talking about?Then slowly within haft an hour that band that looked like clouds started changing in colour to pale green then darkish then start dancing above us! It was a sight to behold! I’d love to see it again in the future.
Best ones are when they cover the whole sky and no cloud above you with no light pollution around. Stars are bright and seeing shooting stars at the same time. Just beautiful. Talkeetna AK.
When I flew from Canada back to Europe I flew right through the Northen Lights. We were flighing at night. I was almost asleep but woke up because I saw some green lights. To my surprise it were the real Northern Lights. Suddenly all the passengers were awake & enjoyed this 'show'. I went for 6months to Canada (close to the border of Alaska) but never actually saw the Northern Lights. This was the best flight ever. 🙀😻 🌌
You are so lucky. I'm crying 😭♥️
So lucky !
omg SO LUCKYYYYYYY
i bet the pilots were crying
Luck u
I've never seen a video of the Northern Lights that isn't sped up x20.
ua-cam.com/video/aVHTOcKo9-4/v-deo.html i came across this video. This wasn't sped up.
I have just before arriving here..it was equally badass.
@@haneulbluu. Even several parts of THAT one are sped up. Look where people are standing next to bus. See how fast their hands and feet move?
It is sped up because it is not a video. 99% of the people make timelapses and not a video.
You need a very very very expensive camera to make a video of the northernlights.
Its timelaps, it will be faster then in real life
My dream to see the northern light...someday.
Always my dream
I went to Iceland last year and missed it, I stayed with a friend and we went out to see it but no luck. But, of course the day I go home the lights were out in force and I missed it.
Where the lights are coming from?
TheIsmaelIsaac the lights are from sun reflection of solar storm hitting our planet magnetic field and center of that is in north and south poles.
@@sp33d90 but how come it happens when there's no sun in both poles? I suspect the sun is behind this phenomenon it could be the magnetic charges but definitely has nothing to do with the sun and certainly has many things to do with magnetic, air pressure and ice.
I can confirm all of this as well. I went to Iceland about a year ago with the sole purpose of seeing the Northern Lights and didn't know what to expect. When the display is weak, it is underwhelming and you're straining to distinguish between whether it's a cloud or the Aurora Borealis. However, as he describes, when it's a strong display and you get lucky, there's no mistaking it. It's truly breathtaking and bright, with the Aurora quite literally dancing above you. 10/10 highly recommend...and if you're reading this with plans to go on a similar adventure, please dress super warm. You're going to be out in the arctic night for hours most likely.
Hey, how long did you stay there? I need to plan because I want to see a strong display and am afraid I won't if I don't stay enough time
@@analourenco5739 The trip I'm referring to in the comment was 9 days and I saw them once, but the show was super intense (rare experience). As I recall I didn't try to go out every night and search for them during that trip though...which is what you need to be doing. I did just finish another Iceland adventure a few days ago. This time the trip was 2 weeks and I saw the lights 5 times. 3 of those weren't very powerful displays and didn't last very long...like I could see them but they were faint and the lights weren't "dancing" a whole lot. The other two were pretty strong displays and lasted for hours, really cool to see but still nothing as intense as my first experience.
There aren't any guarantees at all no matter how long you go, but your statistical likelihood of seeing them is certainly higher if you're trying for longer. I recommend minimum 5 days, but ideally 1.5 to 2 weeks. If you're there for 2 weeks and constantly trying to go out when the forecast is looking good and you still don't see them...you've gotten incredibly unlucky. A really strong display I think is pretty rare so I wouldn't get your hopes up too much for something super intense...you may go and see them like I did quite a few times but none are crazy bright or fast. It's still really cool even if you don't get that experience.
Remember: Dark skies (away from big city lights), clear skies or partly cloudy (if the forecast shows cloud cover everywhere you won't see them), kp index 2 and up, ideally during New Moon (no moon visible in the sky), enough hours of darkness (sometime in April is the cutoff for Northern Lights viewing), check the auroral oval to see when it's over you, and have patience and dress warm!
@@jeremylevy7801 I’m actually going to Iceland 🇮🇸 this Saturday for a week and hopefully I get a nice bonus out of my winter break of seeing it
@@lexluth89 Very nice! Good luck! If you time things right and get out to see them it should be a success!
@@jeremylevy7801 Yeah man. I’m definitely going out every night just to see if I get lucky, crossing my fingers that I could catch it cause the weather forecast seems shaky for the time I’ll be there from what I seen (usually cloudy with light rain or snow) but then again from what I’ve read weather in Iceland can be quite unpredictable so we’ll see. I hope I’m lucky lmao
You never know with the aurora. Suddenly it happens, and just as suddenly is gone. Never ceases to amaze tho.
I love watching the Aurora’s. I live interior Alaska, and I see them all the time. It’s amazing how cool they look when they dance across the night sky.
In Scotland they call them the heavenly dancers and no wonder they are so beautiful 💞💛💚♥️💙❤️
Hi!! When would be the best time to see them in the month of February in Alaska??
@@ritalawson7020 epic
Same here. Northern Maine you see them all the time. Didn't realize it was an event. Lol
@@glennlavalle9807 all the time?? I’m in jersey and had no idea it was common in the US at all. We’re they pretty crazy yesterday? Apparently I might be able to see them slightly here
as a kid in the faroe islands i witnessed the northern lights at an extreme, it was late in fall and it had gotten to the colder point of the year, the entire sky was alive, it was like a Raging ocean of polychromatic lights more colorful than a rainbow and brighter than a full moon! it looked so apocalyptic we were in awe and legitimately afraid. i have not seen it like that ever since and this was about 15-20 years ago
I believe this is the Veil the divides Earth from Heaven. 🙏 👼 It is mentioned in the Holy Bible 4 times. ✝️ 🕯 ⛅️
Sounds like the last major Aurora storm year before the two we had in 2024, they were called the Halloween storms of 2003 I think
I saw them in Banff, Canada, in may 2017 and it WAS EXACTLY as in the pictures. The sky was totally green. I think it was one of the strongest solar storm in the last 10 years, stage 5. I cried like a baby because I had never seen anything more spectacular than that.
Which month was it?
@@meghaseth5815 May.
That’s incredible! Were the lights above you or were they out to the north?
I’ve been researching bad for Banff to try to find out more information about viewing the northern lights from there but it’s hard to find information. Most of the pictures look like the lights are off to the north in the distance but still really beautiful!!
Back in August 1966, my mother woke my brother and I from a sound sleep around 2 am. She wanted to show us something incredible. We trailed after her outside to see what had her all excited. When we arrived in our backyard, we looked up. It was like we were in a giant cathedral with drapes and streamers of light flickering from thousands of feet high. Above the mountains surrounding our valley, more curtains of light snapped and rippled. The lights were mostly greenish but there some faint signs of magenta as well. It was a sight that I have never forgotten.
That's such a great story.
And went right back to sleep after that ? 😂
I just saw the northern lights for the first time on my grandparents farm. It was insanely beautiful, even if it just lasted for a few minutes and wasn’t the strongest. My Grandma just passed away, and today is the last night staying with the family I flew up to visit. We think that the lights were her, in one way or another♥️
I’m sorry your grandma passed. I saw a shooting star with my mom on our drive home right after my grandpa died. Was something I will never forget!
Read about what the inuit believe about northern lights.
I have been in Iceland last September and got to watch the Northern Lights. After 10 years of dreaming to see the lights, I was disappointed beyond belief, its almost as if my heart was crushed. There was a whitish grey haze like a cloud stretching across the sky, which was stunning in the pictures with long exposure. But the second day, there was a powerful solar storm (Kp>5) and there was a good show with mild greenish white, purple lights dancing across the sky. Yes that was beautiful and I was awestruck, but still cant compare with the pictures. So go with moderate expectations, hoping for a good solar storm, else prepare for a white haze. Also, some people's eyes are real sensitive to colors, they can see them a bit brighter than others. Anyway am a happy man!
Tip: Try not looking into your mobile phones or other artificial light sources for sometime as the eyes need to adjust to the darkness to see the northern light colors more vividly.
I couldn't see it in my phone, but really visible with the naked eye. Yet someone had a camera where it showed crystal clear!
Pro tip: take some drugs that dillute your pupils like MDMA or LSD. Colors and movements do more pop, and you are definetly awestruck :)
The lights can either be very clear or less clear
It's my biggest dream to see the northern lights in my life
Come to the Northern Territories in Canada. You will definitely enjoy the light show.
if you live in the US, go to Fairbanks. Make sure you research what 'season' to go.
😊🌌🎆🎆🎆🎆🎆👏🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Really beautiful
It is all I want to do in my life
Thank you for this! Every time I've tried to look for what the Northern Lights look like on UA-cam, it's a timelapse. I wanted to know what they look like when you're actually standing there looking at them. I appreciate you breaking this down into the actual experience and stages.
Its hard to tape it. Timelapse are more beautiful than reality but when you see it then it’s really so amazing, no video can compete that!
This si the only true video about northern light so far... i agree with you. I saw it in iceland
I've had the privilege of seeing some amazing northern lights. Way in northern Minnesota on the Canadian border, they were green and blue and white and yellow. Swirling around and dancing in the sky. I was in the boundary waters canoe area. We were doing some nighttime canoeing. It was something I'll remember for the rest of my life! Incredibly mesmerizing.
Yeah someone from Minnesota
Ive seen them in Quetico :)
I loved seeing the northern lights when i lived in minnesota. My parents forced me to go to church at 5am before school every single day in highschool. The days i saw the Northern lights from the window are about all i remember from those mornings. Im not a morning person at all, but the excitement of seeing the Northern Lights always woke me right up.
I wish I could see Northern Lights in person one day, someday, before I die.... Thank you for this wonderful video.
I’ve been very fortunate to have seen the Northern Lights in both Tromsø and Iceland. But I am very aware of how lucky I am because they are such fickle things! My recommendation for anyone planning a trip to see the Northern Lights is to make sure your trip is not all about seeing the Northern Lights. Go somewhere where there are other things to do and see. Because then if you go all that way and don’t see them, you’ll still have had a great trip. Think of the Northern Lights as a bonus to your holiday.
Living in North sweden and I have probably seen the Northern lights a thousands of times. Still it sometimes can make me amazed with shapes, speed and colours.
Many even among us that lives up here doesn't know that it makes a sound.
You have to be very far away from civilization and without disturbing sounds to hear it.
It is many years since I heard it now even thou I live 17km away from a city and that is because I live by the river and the rapids water sound.
I have made some time lapses from my property.
Thanks for sharing your experience. This March I went to Tromso in Norway and I saw the Northern lights, it was amazing, almost like a religious experience. I remeber I heard somthing but I was not sure, now I know what I heard is real.
@@chomtso this Saturday we were up at North Cape in Norway, my wife have not been there before so she had it on her bucket list but I was there in 2012.
Anyway... Back home it had been a huge northern light....up there in North Cape I didn't see anything of it when I was out walking the dogs at night.
seems like one can be to far north sometimes. :)
Hi Andreas, just wondering if the chances of seeing the northern lights in abisko national park are high? We are looking at going for four nights.
I just watched the Northern lights in my home state of Maine. Stayed up all night watching them during the solar storm last seek. I had tears streaming down my face, i couldn't believe what I was looking at. It was pulsing and rippling across the sky. There were huge pickets in a ring area, but the boundaries were where the really incredible stuff was happening. I can't find any videos anywhere that compare to what I saw with my own eyes. It was rapidly popping in and out of existence like a strobe light, but im the pattern of ripples on a pond of if you rubbed your eyes really hard. The bright parts were beautiful, but the very faded parts that were going nuts were glorious.
Last week, I saw the best northern lights of my life in central MN (just an hour north of Minneapolis). They were easily stage 4 described in this video. However, instead of undulating ribbons of light, the sky was like a concert, with pink strobes covering the whole sky. The reds were also the deepest reds I’ve seen, easily visible to my naked eye. The storm that caused this amazing show ranked as a G4 (kp8) severe geomagnetic storm, the strongest storm since 2017. Even still, I didn’t expect to see such a surreal show this far south.
and WHY MILLIONS of people iddn't see it in 1000 km RADIUS? As it says it is?!
Its a magical experiece really. You gotta watch out for the intensity. And the location had to be really dark less light pollution and less skies.
Very informative! I didn't know that. I've seen them once as a teen in Quebec. Around the fire at camp and out of nowhere it was like the sky exploded into a giant red wave. Got so lucky because it wasn't off in the distance or anything, in the gap of trees that was our camp site it took up the whole sky right above my head. Lasted a few minutes and then disappeared. Greatest moment of my life!
When I was seven, my family vacationed at Four Winds Resort in Marquette, Michigan U.S. The second night we were there we could fully see the Milky Way. The next night an Aurora appeared. 1977 turned out to be a record year for the distance south it appeared. I think I heard in 2023, the Aurora Borealis will be seen in the Northern U.S again as well as parts of England and Germany, and Mongolia and Northern China.
I believe there will be more active sunspot and sunglass activity starting 2023 (6 year cycle). I am planning my aurora trip for 2024 for that reason.
They can be seen in Minnesota,. Wisconsin, Michigan and others still. True they're not as often as they were a few years ago, but I have seen them several times just an hour north of Minneapolis.
Last night was absolutely incredible in northern Minnesota. I've heard many saying it was the best show in decades. It lasted for hours, dancing green and purple curtains and pillars brilliantly visible to the naked eye from the horizon all the way to directly overhead. Happened to be a clear, cold, still night with virtually no moon, yet it was almost as bright out as being underneath a full moon. I'm only about 8 hours from it right now and it's a night I'll never forget.
it has already appeared at parts of northern china
Hi it's 2023 now and let me tell you, last Sunday there was a spectacular Northern Lights show in the U.S but I'm just so unlucky that clouds covered our view.
Just got back from Iceland last night and was so fortunate to see the northern lights.
Thank you very much for going over all of this for everyone. I really hope to get to see this someday!
Same
Thank you for breaking it down! I saw a stage 1 in Maryland close to a year ago. It was grey and looked like a haze but I could see these weird slow wavy movements sway here and there. It was amazing. It could've been a higher stage and I just couldn't see the color. But I definitely could see what looked like wispy clouds swaying back and forth 😯❤️
I live in canada and it is beautiful. You can whistle at while the northern lights and it will come down towards you literally. I was told growing up not to disturb them very much.
Right
It's nice tio meet you, friend. Thank you so much for sharing! I've seen the first stage but had not gotten to see the whole show yet! It is amazing to watch in your video. Thank you for explaining the different stages. I hope you have a wonderful weekend!
I lived in Grande Prairie, Alberta, Canada for several years. Northern Lights visible there frequently. You don't have to go to Norway or somewhere in the Arctic to see them.
Right?! I’m in northern BC and we get them often in the mountains
If you had a VLF radio receiver you could listen to them too. 📻🎧
Every night before sleep I imagine myself witnessing the super aweinspiring Aurora😍
Same here ☹️
Me too
THANK YOU. You are 100% correct! A camera can catch a show that your eye can't really see. What is a light gray "cloud" to your eye becomes a green sky to your camera. GREAT INFORMATION!!! We are going to Alaska next month to try to see a bigger and better show! (The best so far have been in Alta, Norway, and Tromsø, Norway.). :-)
I just seen the northern lights just now! I was disappointed at first because you can’t see it on naked eye then as we are on our way home the northern lights showed as what we see in the videos!! I was stunned! It was so amazing!
We had the same experienced when we didn't see them at first but decided to take a photo. After when we looked through pics in our camera, to our surprise it captured the aurora when the naked eye couldn't see them. But as time passed by, we saw them with our eyes.
I love watching honest videos about Norway... great video. Fully candid videos about Norway are rare. This, for once, tells you the full story...
I am journalist but I like it as well, tell it how it is and no framing and so on. But as it comes to aurora, you will know it when you see it.
I spent a month in Norway driving from Oslo to Bergen and then Lofoten. It’s very different to how it’s projected on Instagram and social media. It really was a big disappointment, especially Lofoten. I found the weather to be very oppressive and the scenery although dramatic, quite bleak and dark....I couldn’t wait to leave after a month. Plus the cost of everything is crazy. I then spent a month in Sweden, in the time I was in the Arctic circle I didn’t see the northern lights once.
@@VisionAssoc in which month were you in sweden?
4:57 There! The real Northern Lights!
Probably the first video I’ve seen of it without it being sped up!!
Exactly!!!
Very helpful! Some videos I have seen were obvious timelapses, but others made me wonder whether this was something that really "danced" in real-time before one's naked eye. Now I see that it can range from just "wispy slightly luminous 'clouds'" all the way to dancing streams that are readily seen.
I went to Fairbanks Alaska four years ago, and I experienced level one. I was a little disappointed because it was not what I expected, but honestly this video gave me hope to try again and hopefully be able to experience level four someday :)
Hi we r from Massachusetts U.S.A.
I want to THANK YOU for making this video. Since we have been able to see the lights in October we have been taking pics and seeing faint results in pur pictures. With you braking it up into stages , this helps alot it matches the pics we have. The cloud that goes strait up in stage one we have it in a picture.
Hundreds doubt us but now your video is proof we have been seeing them. Thank you so much
I had a feeling it was too good to be true... this is what i was really expecting from a real video
two days ago i had the exact same experience; you described mine perfectly....at first i wasnt sure if i was looking at cloud coverage or the dust from the lights...but if you turned around, and looked south, i was easy to tell you were looking at the dust - because there were no clouds in teh sky for miles!!!! we were on top of the cruise ship deck, looking into what could only be described as "a blurry window, out of earth into space." it was not much longer after that first wtf is this cloud moment, we saw the other stages develop......light takes 8 mins to go from sun to earth you have to watch for a good hour to see as much as you can.....we saw light coming up from behind the mountains, some in streaks, some in paintbrush looking strokes, some in l-r waves, and then the dancing above you was insane.....great video to sum up the exact feelings the 4 of us lucky ones had at 2 am lol
G. Adam Elliott what country were you in?
I gotta say I'm a little envious. On my bucket list.
I have been fortunate enough to see all 4 stages. Stages 1 to 3 Ive seen quite a few times, but stage 4, just once. It was around 2am and I was looking out because I got an aurora watch notification. I went out my deck and there it was, beautiful dancing above my head, looked like a dragon dancing in the sky. I ran inside to wake my husband up, i felt like a child on Christmas morning. I still remember the date May 28, 2017. This was in Southern Canada.
Aurora watch? Is this an app you downloaded?
@@summergay6001 I want to know too lol. Probably a meteorology group.
I feel so very blessed to have seen every type of Northern light one could EVER see...I ve seen all the swirls and dancing ,I ve had them create a cathedral of shandalere shards in a complete circle around where I stood they came down to literaly the tops of the trees and whistles and snapped and popped like a musical radio static ...and I've seen popsicle fucsia pink lights ...I ve seen them Sian the entire sky Scape of a valley I lived in creating I swear to god a grid of light seriously like a net across the valley and it went for miles as we drove just vefir mount Robsin right into the Robsin valley that dunster and McBride reside ...very SERIEL...
I genuinely felt as thou I had a personal relationship with them...
I recall Calli g a friend once when they created a full circle like a cathedral arou d where I stood and danced down to the tree tops and were singing ...it terrified my friend she could not be there with me and literally drove away ,went home and inside??? I could not understand it ...I haven't witnessed them in such majesty for many years now..people say you have to be out of city limits ,not true atall ..for many of my mom at spectacular events I was in town in Prince George B.C ...I can't believe so many folks have never seen them ...I ve also just learnt they tend to come around in seven year intervals . I had taken it personally when I hadn't seen them for years...✨💓✨
Have seen them in Seattle and Columbia, Missouri. Always different
Way down in New England we had a magenta pink sky very vivid auroras lasted for an hour, we all stood outside watching it not realizing it was x ray radiation! Fifteen minutes later we all had a bad headache and side effects from THE CME that caused the beautiful sky 18 years ago.
Glad you guys got to see it the way you wanted. I hope I can see for myself one day.
We lived in Fairbanks Alaska for almost 15 years and the Aurora has a cycle of 11 years. During the on years they would be bright and green over our house. On the off years there were none.
This year’s (2022) February I was in Russia’s Murmansk. I especially visited Russia just to watch northern lights. Though it was a full moon night but we were good enough lucky to watch weak but beautiful northern lights. We went for two consecutive nights for aurora hunting. It was an incredible dream that came true. Earlier in 2019 too I booked a package for Russia for the same cause but Corona ruined it. I tell everyone if you haven’t seen aurora borealis your life is not worthy 😅. I will never ever forget that day of my life. In fact if ever I would get chance will again visit any of the countries where I can watch it❤ . This is something which nature has provided us to feel that we are alive✨
I totally agree with you!! It was disappointed twice . I saw northern lights but I was expecting things like they show in pictures ... But it is always a light cloud. But sometimes it can be very intense as well. Very lucky you saw them
My family and I were on a plane back from Iceland. We were all asleep when the plane undergone some slight turbulence. Due to the turbulence, I opened my eyes to check the window. Well, I was SURPISED because I saw a green snake-like light slowly dancing through the window. I immediately woke my family up and told them that the Northern Lights appeared through the plane’s window! I took videos and photos of the beautiful natural phenomena. My family were in awe. I shed some tears of joy, hugged my mom, and appreciated that moment. I hugged my dad and brother too. Seeing the Northern Lights was one of my bucketlist, and we were lucky and blessed to have seen it from the airplane window. It was indeed a dream come true. I hope to see it again from the ground. I love the Northern Lights.
Can you send me the pics on Instagram? Im really curious what it looks like from a plane
@@frankyfrink7135 it looks the same as the one in this video! However, the video's description is right. The Northern Lights does not look as "bright" in your naked eye compared to your cameras. Maybe it depends on how strong the energy particles are but based on my experience, it looked more shiny and bright through my camera. However, you could still see the aurora slowly swaying with your naked eye.
...and then you have "stage 5" where you think you are dreaming or looking at a movie. The light from the Aurora can be so powerful and bright that it even makes shadows. And it can move fast, I even seen it "flashes" like there is a spot that lights up for a fractions of a second.... But that stage seldom happens and is short lived. So if you are not at the right spot or the sky is clear, you miss it.
By the way I live in this area and have seen a lot of Aurora in my lifetime. Most of the time it is as you say, just a faint green/grey mist over the sky.
Did you know there is actually Aurora Borealis activity even in the daytime. But that is of course not visible to our eyes.
U can send me pictures through instagram
Good video for those who have not seen them yet. It's true that they are not like in pictures, but in my opinion, they are more cool in naked eye. It's allways amazing experience when the lights appear, you never know how they move or how bright they will be. It's exiting. I live in southern finland and have seen the lights about 20 times in a year. They are not so cool here in the south but still nice. Still havent seen them on top of my head. Hopefully soon in future.
I have seen them many times from Quebec and Ontario Canada. Most often the looked like gray, thin clouds that would seem to appear and then just fade away. In fact, the first few times I saw them, I didn't think that's what they were, but thought it was very strange behavior for "clouds". It wasn't until on one occasion the gray "clouds" turned shades of green and began moving that I realized I had been seeing the northern lights all those times.
Very true!!!! But it's an out of the world experience to watch with your naked eye. I visited Tromso in the month of February.. It was just a 3 day schedule but we were were lucky enough to get to see the lights within 30 minutes of our arrival to the camp. It was just mind blowing. And with a bonus of moon rise after an hr just speechless.Nature has so much within!!!!!
live in southern vermont usa, about 12 years ago, i got too see an explosive show, red overhead with spokes like on a wheel, was truly awesome, seen a lot of northern lights up here in last 24 years, but mostly weaker displays, the one that was red was seen as far south as texas, !! clear skies:), p.s , it takes a lot of time and patience when trying too see the northern lights, years too finally see that big one!!
I saw them like that where I live (Northern USA) in 2001. Never seen anything like it before or since. Went to Alaska for a week a few years ago, expecting something like what I saw in 2001 and saw NOTHING.
I remember in 2001 or 02 seeing them in Northern MD near the PA border. There were red, green and white streaks and curtains in the Northern sky. Must have been a strong solar event to have seen them that far South.
Jeez, maybe it was that storm in 2000 or 2001, lol time goes by fast the older I get, it only lasted for about 10 to 20 minutes of the explosive part of that night, and I read that people seen it as far south as Texas, I'm sure I've missed some really cool ones in the last almost 26 years I've been in vt, but like black bear's, I see they are around my house on a regular basis but never seen one yet !! Lol, it's the same with the northern lights I think, you have too be lucky enough just to have been looking that way at what might only be really visible for a very short period of time 🤔
Yes, pictures are different. I had to learn that too when I visited Lapland. It is amazing nevertheless 😊
This is so true. I went to Iceland to see the northern lights and was not prepared for this. What I saw with my eyes was barely visible but through my camera they looked awesome. It was still a fantastic experience but nothing like the photos you see online
Some 30 years ago I saw aurora borealis in Somerset, UK. There were reports the next day of how they had been most visible in Cornwall. I did not know to begin with what I was seeing and it was quite unnerving but hypnotic. Toweringly tall purple curtains were just wafting, as if slo-mo, in the dark sky for a few minutes. Astonishing and beautiful and very memorable.
I can't even imagine.
Wherabout s in Somerset pls?I live there too.Thanks
Large thank you for providing category in respect to northern light intensity, its something ive been wanting to do for a while, but now i will not bother.
My favorites are ofcourse three and four.
I have seen spectacular Northern Lights in the sky over a small Northern Pennsylvania, US town one cold, clear November night. Being that the light had travelled so far South, we could only see what appeared to be sheer, red curtains wafting in the breeze. They were everywhere, all over the sky, and lasted for a long time. It was a spellbinding display; one I’ll not ever forget. I’d love to travel to Norway someday, and see the Aurora in its green & purple colour phases.
What year? How is that even possible?
Thank you! I went to see the Northern Lights about 10 years ago and only saw grey clouds dancing in the sky but took spectacular pictures with my camera. I came home and researched on the internet if you could see colors with the naked eye! If so, I would try to see them again. If not, then I saw what I could.
I went to Rovaniemi, Finland to see the aurora and I kept being told I wouldn't really he able to see them with my naked eyes or probably even my phone's camera (if they appeared at all. It was cloudy at the first place we stopped at) When we tried our last stop, everyone else was busy with their fancy cameras and I was just staring at the sky -hoping.- I saw these little white wisps at first and I honestly figured it was smoke from the campfire, but then off to the right theu started kicking up and while they were the big wide bands that cross the whole sky, they were visible enough for all of us to absolutely freak out, and I got phone pictures without too much issueaside from the general phones-hate-space-pictures issue.
I live in northern Alberta in Canada - we had two huge displays of it this week. The photos we got were just like we saw with our eyes it was that bright. And 10 seconds is too long for the exposure - if you want to get nice streaks keep it between 3-6 seconds max.
The most beautiful Northern Lights I have seen is when I was traveling in Arctic Sweden in 2018 summer. There is even no actual nights in summer Arctic. I watched the northern light in the time call Nautical Twilight. During nautical twilight there is still some sunlight in the sky. But the northern light is just so bright so we can see them dancing in the sky even with little sunlight. Even an outdated mobile phone camera can take pictures of these northern lights. Sadly I forgot to bring my SONY camera to take better quality pictures. It is still really amazing and I won't forget the view in my life.
Thank you for this description! Stay warm!!
I saw the northern lights in Yukon Canada and going to Iceland and Tromsø this year to see it!!!
Kameko Miyamora for that money u can book a flight ticket to russia and u can see it from murmansk nd u can join in tour group or u can see it by yourself nd it will b a great trip tooo .... im sure it will cost u within 2 k dollar
Kameko Miyamora thts so cool ✌️
sana all...mm
Can i go wd u ☹️
Too many people are not aware of the fact that specific cameras are needed to record good pics or footage. IR and UV filters need removed from the camera sensors and you can get so much better footage that needs a good degree of post production to make it look like something you actually saw.
Thank you sooo much for doing this. I live in Indiana ...no lights at all. Anything that shows up on your videos is more than I have. Thank you for taking your time out of your life to do this for us. Thank you! 🥳
Same here..
I’m going to be in Codeing school
thank you for taking the time to make this video, its very good and informative. much love brother!
Its the most amazing natural phenomena I’ve ever seen in my life ❤️
Well, watching Aurora is really a matter of luck. I went to Yellowknife of Canada in December 2017 to watch it. It was damn good as the dancing Aurora with numerous colours, according to the guide, was the most intensive one the guide had ever seen. That trip took me 5 nights staying in the small town, but only the 3rd night had such an amazing display, all other nights were only a thin shade of green in the sky
Saw them on a nighttime ferry ride from Juneau to Sitka way back in 1983.
About 10 pm someone yelled out "The lights are out, the lights are out!" Everyone ran to the top deck and for the next 2 hours we all watched, completely captivated!
They changed intensity and size as our ferry changed its direction according to our course.
It was the highlight of my first trip to Alaska.
(This was in late September btw.)
Thank you so much for your video. We are in Narvik and already gave up the idea of seeing the Northern Lights. When we went out with our dogs at 22:00, we saw the grey stripes that transformed into solid green - only because of your video, we were aware what the grey strips were.
I fully agree. I was also hoodwinked. The lights were finally caught on film and not by the naked eye !
I was in Iceland 4 years ago with my son who's a photographer, he knew exactly where to go and ingot to see the most amazing show with him one night
Good and truthful video.
Guys I live in Norway and went to Tromso for a bunch of days to experience the arctic and the northern lights. The city is full of different agencies offering tours to ''chase them'' out of light pollution. Each of these tours costs around 100-140 euros per person. They assured us we would have seen them, despite the very low activity predicted on the Aurora Forecast. Well, what we got was a team of well-equipped photographers taking pictures of a grey small cloud that was slightly moving in the sky. Nothing more than this visible with our eyes. What I mean by this comment is: do not trust these agencies if the activity predicted is so low (you can check yourself with an APP). Northern lights in Tromso are a business and even if one time they would have not started the tour had the activity been so low now mass tourism is just too big and they will try to take as much money from tourists. My advice is: check if there is going to be good activity at the time you are there and then decide whether to buy one of the tours to get out of the city.
PS: the ''guide'' is often a professional ph who asks you if you want a portrait with the Aurora just to be later asked 30 bucks for the mere file of the photo. Be aware!
hi Jan
thanks for showing this video because I was going to plan to visit Norway to try hard because that is not easy for me to travel too expansive tour .... there is no values of money against life nature and time... internet and TV shows different if I came and looking around sky that may be heartbroken to me but when they got pics like coloured sky
I saw them last night, 10/5/24 from central England, apparently they were visible all over the UK. They were spectacular!
That's what brought me here..all the best bro 🤙
Saw them in Iceland for the first time about a month ago, very underwhelmed, just a grey wispiness that could have been cloud, my photos show the colours that the eye wasn't able to pick out, they were a No1 on your scale.
MrMJP59 they’re intense after solar storms
I just saw them a few hours ago...they were spectacullar...the sky exploded in whiteish turquise and it was flickering and dancing on all the sky. It was kp 5. If the activity is strong enough they are really beautiful.
All I do is read about the Aurora. I obsessively look up pictures. I paint them. I dream about them.
One night I dreamed that I was night swimming. I went under water and went down deep in it's blackness. When I started to come up to the surface again I could see the Aurora from under the water, glowing and dancing. What looked like a heavenly melted candy, a liquid rainbow, met my eyes as I emerged from the water. I was completely spellbound, and I wish this had not been a dream. But it was. I hope someday it will come true.
Absolutely beautiful! The truth is that there’s water above the Firmament and the northern lights dance across it. Those lights are pure energy emanating from the center of the Earth.
Oh, and where you (the REAL you) go in your dreams is infinitely closer to truth than this physical realm that you experience. Pretty much when you wake up in your bed in the morning, you’re essentially back in the real dreamland. “Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily, life is but a dream...” 😊
When I saw the Northern lights it was in may in North Dakota. I had just moved there and it was my first night.it was beautiful. Multi colors going from the ground up. It was breath taking. I had seen the lights several times that year, but it was not the same. The other times was like lightning rolling a crossed the sky. Still nice to watch, but not near as breathing taking and beautiful.
I've lived in Tromsø and worked as a northern lights guide and it's not fair that you just confirm that "northern lights are not what they show you on pictures" based on a 5 day experience...
I've seen the aurora with my naked eye some nights that it could just light up an entire fjord in green and purple from how strong it was and I can 100% guarantee that you can see what you see on pictures.
The problem is that people expect to go and see amazing northern lights as if it was something you can turn on, but they are literally solar plasma...
So depending on the amount of plasma that reaches earth, they will be stronger or weaker...
It is such a variable phenomenon that you shouldn't definitely claim it is not what you expect from that short experience cause it will just ruin some other dreams of seeing something they can actually see, just don't take for granted that you'll see them 10/10 and value the fact that what you are seeing is coming from the f*ckin sun!!
I was thinking the same. But then, is it even worth traveling all the way to the north for couple of days? I mean how frequent are the auroras? I would love to see these one day, but I dont think spending 3 days somewhere gives me any decent chance..
Thanks for your info, i live in the Caribbean and im planning on taking a trip..What is the best time of year to travel to Tromso and how long a visit to experience the Northern Lights in all its glory?
When should we travel Tromso. Please let us know.
We may be disillusioned expecting too much after seeing all the images on Utube ??? May not be the same that's what you are warning us ?
Yes, Good storms can bring in moderate greenish purple/white curtains of light, but do not expect them be the same as in pictures or videos. Our eyes are not evolved to see colors vividly at night, so always go with moderate expectations, and if the solar storm is low, you can expect to see a greyish white haze across the sky which will ofcourse be stunning in pictures with long exposure.
Thanks for the explanation :-)
Thanks!
Awesome! Thanks guys for creating such beautiful video.
I hear that apparently the northern lights are expanding in a few days for a little while.
Being from northern maine. Northern lights are nightly if you look. I'm surprised others see it as an event. Happens every night in maine.
@@glennlavalle9807 I'm still kicking myself for not taking the trip from when I lived up Bar HARBOR and now I don't think I will ever get that chance again I could cry , mother nature and our earth is going through so much and who knows what will be next that we start to loose ,just look at the ice glacers the 1 that broke off and was headed for land...wow was that à hard wait to see what direction it was going to take...
Having just experienced this in London, this video is spot on and helpful. At 8pm yesterday I was only able to see very weak patches of red with my eye, but was capturing a moderate aurora with my phone camera. But at 10pm, I was amazed to go outside and clearly see a pinkish/red aurora in the sky with fainter green around it. That was a life experience and to have experienced it from my own back garden without freezing myself in the arctic was cool.
Thanks! I made a new one and it’s online now!
very accurate - excellent video, photo, visual and descriptive points! as with everything astronomical, there are better nights and conditions for seeing than others. i was fortunate enough to be stationed in keflavik iceland for the winter, and we were spoiled by incedible displays, but not every night, and i'm sure we missed many awesome displays due to weather. but that one or two experiences of the 'stage 4' aurora as you describe, makes the journey and experience well worth it! great video!
mjproebstle unless you're above artic circle you won't see them
This was so helpful!! I took some photos in the upper peninsula of Michigan tonight because we got a “Geo storm warning”…I got so excited (FL girl) and my photos looked like them but I didn’t see the same thing. Of course I was expecting the green and purple crazy sky but I’m glad I did actually see them thanks to your explanation
What time of year were you there? Does it happen more frequently at certain times in Norway??
Usually it happens when it's dark enough to see it. As early as late august. And it happens alot. It starts of as a haze. And that's the solar storm itself. Then that collides with the upper atmosphere and the colors explode
They happen most often every 11 years. When the Sun hits solar Maximum, we are heading into the next Solar Maximum so the next 2-3 years should be good! I live in Canada and see them all the time. But always lots more when we are in solar max
Depending where you’ll be, in here from September you can see and November & February they are more visible :)
ps: you can only see from September to March (some rare times in August and April) :)
@@eucmike great information! Thanks for sharing!
Last night was a 5 in Iceland 😮 dancing changing colours for over an hour
U can send me pictures plzzz
@@snehaacharya8021 no idea how to send pictures via UA-cam 😜 but if I could í would although they are only taken with my phone, they are still worth seeing
@@TonySaunders ya u can send me in instagram if you don't mind...that's my dream
@@snehaacharya8021 what's your insta? I'll add yah
@@TonySaunders underscore snesh underscore
yes the "disco" moment is called substorm, usually you have one big one per night, usally between 11pm and 12am. Usually it lasts 5 min, but can last up to 1 hour if you are very lucky. Since it is unpredicatable, you have to be ready for it, waiting in the car for hours sometimes :)
100% correct. I visited Lapland in Dec'17 and saw white colors moving in the sky one evening when I was walking all alone. Till now I was confused if it was someone just flashing a torch in the sky from somewhere in the hills. But I guess after seeing you describe stage 1 exactly as I witnessed, I shall now be able to pacify myself that it was actually the Northern lights. Haha!
On another night I saw a faint green line in the sky. This time there were people around me who also got excited so I was certain this was definitely it. However I was disappointed with how faint it looked with the naked eye. We saw another guy setup his camera on a tripod and take a pic, and that came out so bright and amazing. That's when I realised what we see on the internet is far far far away from what we will see in reality. He was kind enough to take a pic of my wife and me and email it to us. In that it looks a nice bright green and will remain our memory of the norther lights.
I'm surely going back to one of the Scandinavian countries in the winter and hope to see stage 4 atleast once.
After watching this (great) video, I realized I have seen stage 1 lights. Maybe a few times. But I want MORE. Thanks for the video.👍
Done with love!
He left out Stage 5, where 50-ton lava boulders covered in flames fall out of the sky like rain.
Is that the one where you have to save the afterlife from a soul-eating dragon?
This was one of the best simple and accurate explanation I have ever come across, your video needs more views! I love that you had really good video and pictures to go with everything!
I would love to see that in front of me, planning to go to Iceland or Norway next month just to see Aurora ♥️♥️
You can also go to Sweden
This is a great video!! Nice, real narration- love it- thanx!
I’ ve seen one up in the Yukon in Canada. It looked like a whitish band of clouds initially. We were like, that was it? Is this the Northern lights we were talking about?Then slowly within haft an hour that band that looked like
clouds started changing in colour to pale
green then darkish then start dancing above us! It was a sight to behold! I’d love to see it again in the future.
Best ones are when they cover the whole sky and no cloud above you with no light pollution around. Stars are bright and seeing shooting stars at the same time. Just beautiful. Talkeetna AK.
Just like Rapunzel.
I have a dream too
To see the lights 💛🔥❤️
I was wondering what that grey light was. My best pics came 15- 30 min after. Louisville Ky