May 28, 2017 Auroras

Grand Rapids and Hibbing

The evening started with a nice rainshower and an intense rainbow.  My iPhone captured the best images when it was most intense, but I also ran to get my DSLR camera and snapped a couple shots.

Rainbow after a passing rain shower.

Then, it was time for auroras. After a CME impact in the morning from a filament eruption several days ago, Bz had dropped to near -20 nT in the wake of the plasma cloud. A strong showing of auroras was essentially guaranteed, but it was May, and there were several hours of daylight left. Bz did not change much until long after sunset, and even though sunset was almost 9:00 PM, we started to see the auroras before 10:00 PM.

Twilight. Auroras are starting to become visible  in the lower center part of this image.  9:55 PM.

10:03 PM.  The auroras are multi-colored and showing through the twilight.

Just a couple minutes later, the auroras are picking up in intensity.

10:24 PM. We are seeing weak coronas overhead.

Looking east down the main auroral arc.

10:37 PM.  This was the strongest corona I saw this evening.

After I had shot some corona images and auroras in the northern half of the sky, the clouds moved in across the northern half of the sky, so I decided to drive home. When I pulled out onto the county road, I could see the skies were still clear to the south, so I snapped a picture of the auroras there.

Picket fence auroras and "Steve" (a.k.a. "proton arc") looking south.

I drove home and tried to view auroras in the northeastern sky, but there are trees in that part of my view, and the northeastern sky was also illuminated by city lights. I decided to chase the clear skies to the east and headed toward Hibbing on U.S. 169. This route does not afford a lot of opportunities to compose a good shot, but the sky was clear in that direction, so that was the only way I really could go. I looked to the east and northeast as the clouds were chasing me from the southwest. I shot for about an hour until the clouds started to slide back in.

Set up near Hibbing.

Steady auroras to the east-northeast.

The skies looked a bit clearer to the south, so I drove that way, but the clouds moved in there, too, so I drove home. I arrive back home after 2:00 AM, and I had to go on a long drive the next day. It seems the best shows are the night before I have to drive somewehre.

I got back home, and another break in the clouds appeared.  The auroras were getting brighter. I moved to my back deck and shot until about 3:00 A.M., then went to bed.  While I was shooting, a strong auroral substorm began, but before I could photograph all of it, the clouds moved back in, ending my show for the night.

Back home.

A substorm about the start from my back deck.

These auroras are very bright and dancing quickly.

Fortunately, for my sleep, the clouds moved in and ended the show.  I got to bed by 3:00 AM.

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