Ah, the elusive dancing lights of the Aurora Borealis, otherwise known as the Northern Lights. I’ve seen them twice in my life. The first time I saw them, I was a teenager walking home from a neighbor’s house in the winter. Since it was the 1970s and the height of the Cold War, I thought they were bombs going off on the horizon. The second time, about 20 years later, I saw them in New Hampshire and realized after a few minutes that they were the Northern Lights. If you are not expecting them, they can look rather eerie.
When Terri and I planned our Alaskan adventure to begin in May, we scarcely dared to hope that the Northern Lights would dazzle us during our visit. We thought the chances were rather nil, and we would have to plan a winter trip with sub-zero temperatures (fat chance). When we arrive in early May, the sun will stick around for 21 hours, (the link is for the Fairbanks daylight tracker). Each day the sun stays six more minutes until the 24 hours of sunshine during summer solstice. Our chances of seeing the Aurora seemed as slim as spotting the Big Dipper at high noon in Toledo, Washington.
But just yesterday, the lady who owns the house where we are staying in Fairbanks sent us a picture from her front steps. Yowsers! Looks like we will see the Northern Lights after all. Here is the picture:
“What are the Northern Lights?” you ask. They are God’s grand spectacle of particles colliding across the Arctic sky. This phenomenon, known as the Aurora Borealis, is a part of the greater auroral family, which includes its southern counterpart, the Aurora Australis, or the Southern Lights.
The science behind this marvel is as fascinating as the lights themselves. Imagine, if you will, particles being propelled out of the sun, riding a solar wind 93 million miles across the galaxy to smack into the gases of our upper atmosphere. The speed at which these particles travel varies from 300 to 800 kilometers per second as it leaves the sun (800 kilometers per second is equivalent to around 1,750,00 miles per hour). That is pretty fast! However, during some solar events, which cause intense auroras, the particles can accelerate to even higher speeds. These high-energy particles are what make the auroras visible, and their speed is a key factor in the intensity of the light display. This cosmic shower paints the sky in hues of green, purple, red, and blue—a visual display of God’s artistic imagination and omnipotence.
When to witness this wonder? In Fairbanks, the season of the Northern Lights stretches from the tail end of summer to the onset of spring. We are staying until late September, and with each night spent gazing into the sky, our chances of beholding the aurora stand at a solid 90%.
Fairbanks is an excellent place for aurora seekers. Situated beneath the auroral oval, it offers a front-row seat to God’s magnificent light show. Other cities famed for their views include Tromsø in Norway, Jökulsárlón in Iceland, Abisko National Park in Sweden, and Yellowknife in Canada.
Predicting the Northern Lights is a bit like forecasting the weather—one can only guess and hope. Yet, thanks to the Aurora Tracker from Explore Fairbanks, Alaska, we can equip ourselves with the best predictions science can muster, marrying data from the Geophysical Institute with the forecasts of weather and the waning daylight.
So, if you find yourself journeying to Fairbanks while we’re still in residence, give us a shout. When the skies are dark, and if conditions favor us, we’ll share in the awe of the aurora together.
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