November 8, 2017 Auroras
Mount Itasca Winter Sports Center, Coleraine, Minnesota
It's snow-making season! During the best part of this aurora event, I was out moving snow guns at Mount Itasca, preparing for U.S. Biathlon events and cross-country ski races on our course during the 2017-2018 winter season. A substorm erupted just as we were finishing up, so I snapped a few photos, but we keep the place pretty brightly lit while we are making snow, so it was difficult to get good contrast.
Later, I was able to drive a couple miles down the road and observe a second substorm. Prairie Lake was already frozen for the season, so I walked a little out onto the ice and took a photograph of myself.
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| A substorm erupts outside of the biathlon headquarters building. |
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| A green glow serves as a backdrop to snow-making operations (see snow gun on the right). |
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| I tried to back away from the intense lights and to see more of the northern horizon. |
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| About an hour later at Prairie Lake. The auroral arc is reforming. |
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| A second substorm begins, reflected in ice. |
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| This is probably the peak of the substorm. |
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| Selfie. Actually, I think it's hard to hold a smile for the length of the camera exposure without looking a little creepy. |
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