What Countries Can You See the Northern Lights

Travellers from all over the world travel to countries in the 'auroral zone' in the hope to witness this unique spectacle. The Northern Lights are featured on almost every traveller's bucket list. We've all heard of them, we've seen the photos, merely what exactly is the Aurora Borealis and what's the best style to see them? Proceed on reading, we've prepared a guide to the fascinating heaven phenomenon.

i The Northern Lights are featured on near every traveller's bucket list.

There are only a few phenomena that can capture i'southward attention and imagination like the Aurora Borealis. The Northern lights are i of Mother Nature's most jaw-dropping sights, listed as one of thevii natural wonders of the world.

These spectacular awe-inspiring twirls of light are unpredictable and then fascinating, that once they start their dance in the heaven, nobody tin can remain indifferent. They are and so captivating, that in Iceland the police had to start giving warnings to foreigners to stop gazing at the lights while driving. Nosotros've all heard of them, we've seen the photos, but what exactly is the Aurora Borealis and what's the best way to see them?

ii The Northern lights are listed as ane of the 7 natural wonders of the world.

The Nuts

What is an Aurora Borealis?

The Aurora is an incredible lite show acquired by collisions between electrically charged particles released from the dominicus'southward temper that enter the world's atmosphere and collide with gases such as oxygen and nitrogen. Auroral displays can appear in many vivid colours, that are a result of different gas particles colliding in the upper atmosphere.

3 What is an Aurora Borealis?

• The well-nigh common aurora borealis color is green, which is produced by oxygen molecules located nigh 60 miles higher up the globe.
• Colours such as carmine, yellow, dark-green, blue and violet are also seen occasionally. The rarer cerise auroras are produced by high-altitude oxygen, at heights of upwards to 200 miles. Nitrogen produces blue or purple aurora. (source)

FUN FACT: Northern Lights are rarely seen from Southern Europe, only on the rare occasions that they appear, they are normally red, which can exist terrifying for people unaware of its origin. A few weeks before the French Revolution the skies over England and Scotland turned cherry-red, so the lights were believed to be a bad omen.

When to run across the Northern Lights?

THE Best TIME OF THE YEAR

Auroras occur throughout the twelvemonth, however you lot need dark skies to come across them. And then summer months render them invisible to the naked eye. If you are planning a Northern Lights hunt, you should definitely organize your trip during the rest of the yr.

Probably the most popular catamenia for Aurora hunting is from December to March, because those months bring long night, only also pretty common cold nights. Notwithstanding, the hunting begins as soon as the end of August, and so September and Oct are good months as well, peculiarly for those of you who prefer to avoid the farthermost cold. The colours can be admittedly astonishing in autumn, moreover, those are the only months when you might experience the Northern lights reflected in open water as well. A spectacular sight that doesn't occur afterwards the h2o freezes.

However, since Aurora is a naturally occurring phenomenon, it is hard to predict in advance. Much is dependent on solar winds, then you might count on a scrap of luck for that.

Nonetheless, you can bank check the Aurora forecast on several websites similar this.

• There is some speculation that the spring and fall Equinoxes (effectually 20 March and 20 September) bring greater solar activity, which makes these days a potentially good time to get star-gazing in the North. (source)

four Auroras occur throughout the twelvemonth, however yous need nighttime skies to encounter them.

Where to see the Northern Lights?

The Northern Lights tin be plant in a band known as the "auroral zone" in the Northern hemisphere, which is a wider expanse effectually the magnetic pole. The closer you are to this region, the amend your odds of catching the lights. So, the all-time Aurora Borealis can be seen from Greenland, Republic of iceland, Alaska, Northern Canada, Russian federation, Kingdom of norway, Finland and Sweden.

• The lights are seen effectually the poles of both the northern and southern hemisphere. And then Aurora Borealis are the lights occurring in the northern hemisphere, but there are also lights that occur in the southern hemisphere called Aurora Australis or southern lights.
• Scientists take learned that in most instances northern and southern auroras are mirror-similar images that occur at the same fourth dimension, with similar shapes and colours.
• With less landmass in the south, the southern lights are perhaps less talked nigh as they mostly occur over water, but they can be seen from Antarctica, and over parts of New Zealand, Australia and Tasmania.
• Astronauts on board of the International Space Station are at the same altitude every bit the auroras and see them from the side.

v Places to See the Northern Lights in 2021

1. Abisko, Sweden

Abisko in Sweden might exist ane of the best and virtually beautiful places in the globe to experience the Northern Lights, and there are numerous guided tours plus the Aurora Sky Station to dorsum information technology.

The best way to get there is by flying to Stockholm and then either taking a night train to Abisko or a flying to Kiruna, the nearest airport, and and so a railroad train to Abisko.

2. Tromso, Norway

Tromso is a known destination equally well, although, in Kingdom of norway the feel is quite unique as you lot can view the lights in different metropolis centers and in the countryside as well.

3. Northern Finland

Another popular country for Aurora hunters is Finland, where you can join one of the many tours available and gaze at the sky from glass igloos and luxury suites, purposely built for this. The virtually pop place to encounter the Northern Lights in Finland is Rovaniemi.

4. Reykjavik, Iceland

The lights are the principal allure that drove big tourism popularity in Iceland. The best Aurora spots within the metropolis tend to exist along the coast, where you have a wide horizon without much sources of artificial calorie-free. The most pop viewing spot in Reykjavik is the Grotta isle, pop both among locals and strange visitors.

5. Island of Skye, Scotland

That is right! Although not as popular equally the previous destinations, The Isle of Skye in Scotland is a cute metropolis with clear skies, ideal for stargazing and catching the fascinating light testify.

Find more data virtually booking cheaper flight tickets here!

Other popular spots to view the Northern Lights:

Fairbanks, Alaska

Alaska is a great destination to become see the Aurora Borealis, and Fairbanks is amid the near popular places. Situated inland, shut to many large national parks, almost exactly beneath the arctic circumvolve, Fairbanks offers a very unique experience.

Yukon, Canada

Yukon is some other popular place to see the Northern Lights, offering loads of tours and activities revolving around this spectacular phenomenon.

Murmansk, Russian federation

Murmansk is the earth's largest city across the Chill Circle, populated with 300,00 people. The conditions in Murmansk makes viewing the Aurora quite an enjoyable experience, as it only drops as low as -x degrees celsius.

5 One time they appear, the show can last for a few minutes or all night

v things to know if y'all plan on chasing the Northern Lights

ane. They appear in many forms
Auroras come in many forms and shapes, from small patches of lights, to arcs, bands, pillars or shooting rays that calorie-free upward the heaven. Sometimes you'll see them on the horizon looking like a curtain of light, other times they'll be right above you, spreading in all directions over the night sky. Two people can look at the same Aurora but experience information technology very differently depending on where they're standing.

2. They are better seen with the camera
Certainly, observing the Northern Lights is a truly breathtaking experience, even so, if you're planning to become Aurora hunting, yous should know that the lights might non appear bright green like in photographs. The naked eye sees the lights more greyish, unless they are very very bright.

3. They are unpredictable: shows can terminal for a few minutes or all night
In order to run across the Northern Lights you'll need dark articulate skies, but that is not the only key factor for them to be visible. Once they appear, the show can last for a few minutes or all night, depending on the magnitude of the incoming solar wind. So, when planning to see the Aurora, one of the nearly important things you should bring along is definitely patience. It will be worth information technology!

4. Y'all can see them with the full moon
In that location is a common misconception that the Northern Lights are not visible when there is a total moon. This is actually not true, as a affair of fact, many photographers say they've taken some of their best photographs of the Aurora Borealis with the full moon illuminating the foreground and producing a much more than interesting issue.

5. Aurora Borealis in 2021
Are you planning to go Aurora hunting in 2021? Hither's what you demand to know:

• Northern Lights, equally we've already explained are influenced by the activity of the dominicus, which goes through a roughy eleven-yr cycle.
• Each solar cycle includes iii-4 years of solar maximum, which generates a lot of Northern Lights activeness, accompanied by a couple of years of transition, and and so 3-4 years of solar minimum.
• The yr 2022 is unfortunately close to the solar minimum, which means less Northern Lights activity, but information technology also means that the Aurora can exist more predictable.
• Solar activity will increase slowly, with a solar maximum expected in 2024/2025.

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Source: https://www.goopti.com/en/about/goopti_blog/aurora-borealis-where-to-see-the-northern-lights-in-2020

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