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December 29, 2014 Auroras

Grand Rapids, MN

I awoke just after 4:00 AM and remembered that the solar wind conditions had been improving when I had gone to bed so I checked the ACE data, and sure enough, the solar wind conditions had continued to improve.  Bz had been increasingly negative during the night.  I checked the Great Lakes Aurora Hunters group on Facebook and saw one report from Babbit, so I popped my head out the front door.  Indeed, the auroras were visible on the northern horizon.

I drove out to McKinney Lake on the north side of town to do some photography.  After a few minutes there, I decided to try someplace with less man-made light.  I drove up to the Cedar Creek Grille and took a few shots there, but I wasn't too happy with the foreground for the amount of auroral glow there was.

I then headed up to Wabana Lake, where there was a larger horizon.  I walked out on the lake and found a nice foreground of trees silhouetted against the auroras.  I took a few shots there, then proceeded to the open lake to do a short time lapse before dawn.

Front Yard Auroras
Auroras from the front yard at 4:19 AM.
Nice Auroras
Auroras over McKinney Lake in Grand Rapids at 4:49 AM.  I used a headlamp to illuminate myself.  THere are numerous street lights and yard lights illuminating the lake, and there is a car or truck with its brights on just over the horizon in the center of the picture.
Wabana Auroras
Auroras over Wabana Lake north of Grand Rapids at 5:44 AM.
Wabana Auroras
Auroras over Wabana Lake north of Grand Rapids at 6:05 AM.  The Milky Way runs across the top of the image.

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