Archive for Northern Lights

Night of the Aurora

Posted in Biographical, Maynooth, The Universe and Stuff with tags , , , , , on May 11, 2024 by telescoper

My social media feeds have been buzzing all day with images of last night’s display of the Aurora Borealis (and Australis) resulting from a large solar storm. I saw some great pictures from Ireland, including many from Maynooth and environs. I really liked this one taken from one of the ships of the Irish Naval Service:

I also saw pictures of the Aurora Borealis from the UK (even as far South as the Midlands), USA and as far South in Europe as Marseilles, not to mention New Zealand (Aurora Australis).

It’s not that unusual for the Northern Lights to be visible from Ireland, but it is extremely rare to see them from Catalonia. They were visible last night from Sabadell, just a few km North of Barcelona, though not as far as I know in Barcelona itself. I didn’t see anything, but I was otherwise engaged. The Observatory at Montsec Astronomical Park recorded the strongest level of Auroral activity for 150 years.

Auroral activity seen from Sabadell, picture credit Albert Segura Lorrio

All this reminds me that many moons ago, I once stood directly under an auroral display, in Tromsø (Norway), and I can tell you ever the word “awesome” applied to anything, this was it. The curious thing is that I had the definite feeling that there was a booming and whooshing sound to go with the light show. I wasn’t the only one there who thought they could hear it as well as see it. And I wasn’t drunk either. Well, not very.

Whenever I asked anyone about the sound my questions were dismissed on the grounds that there is no physical mechanism that could produce sound waves at audible frequencies of sufficient power to reach ground level from the altitude at which the light is generated. It must have been psychological, as if the brain wants to add a backing track when it sees something as spectacular as this. However, read at least one researcher is not so sure…

Comments are welcome through the usual box.

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Northern Lights over Maynooth

Posted in Maynooth, The Universe and Stuff with tags , , on November 9, 2023 by telescoper
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Northern Lights over Maynooth
It seems the Northern Lights have been seen over Maynooth! (picture by @_fidel_astro on Instagram)

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Variations on the Theme of Northern Lights

Posted in Art, The Universe and Stuff with tags , , , , on December 9, 2015 by telescoper

This morning I woke up as usual to BBC Radio 3. Unusually however this morning’s breakfast programme was broadcast live from the picturesque town of Tromsø in Norway, which is well inside the Actic Circle so is dark all day at this time of year. The broadcast from Norway part of a three-week extravaganza called Northern Lights, which focusses on the music and culture North of 60° latitude.

Anyway, this prompted me to do a brief post about a couple of related matters connected by the theme of Northern Lights.

The first is to draw your attention to the fact that, to coincide with this Nobel Prize Week in Stockholm, the artist Olafur Eliasson has set up a temporary public artwork in Stockholm called Your Star, which involves putting an artificial star into the sky over Stockholm. I gather it has been quite difficult to get the star to behave in the windy conditions, but in any case you can use the website to view six short videos and even create your own star..

The second is this wonderful video of the  Aurora Borealis? If you haven’t seen this before then take a look. It’s not a fake. This is what it’s really like.

I stood under a show like this once, in Tromsø in fact, and I can tell you ever the word “awesome” applied to anything, this is it. The curious thing is that I had the definite feeling that there was a booming and whooshing sound to go with the light show. I wasn’t the only one there who thought they could hear it as well as see it. And I wasn’t drunk either. Well, not very.

I’m reliably informed however that there is no physical mechanism that could produce sound waves of sufficient power to reach ground level from the altitude at which the light is generated. It must have been psychological, as if the brain wants to add a backing track when it sees something as spectacular as this. Any views on this phenomenon would be welcome via the comments box..

 

UPDATE: here’s an interesting take on the Auroral Sounds issue.

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Northern Lights

Posted in The Universe and Stuff with tags , on March 23, 2011 by telescoper

Never seen the Aurora Borealis? Then get a load of this. It’s not a fake. This is what it’s really like.

I stood under a show like this once, in northern Norway, and I can tell you ever the word “awesome” applied to anything, this is it.

The curious thing is that I had the definite feeling that there was a booming and whooshing sound to go with the light show. I wasn’t the only one there who thought they could hear it as well as see it. And I wasn’t drunk either. Well, not very.

I’m reliably informed however that there is no physical mechanism that could produce sound waves of sufficient power to reach ground level from the altitude at which the light is generated. It must have been psychological, as if the brain wants to add a backing track when it sees something as spectacular as this.


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