August 3, 2020 Aurora
Pokegama Lake
This is the final outing shooting auroras at the family cabin on Pokegama Lake. It was a nice, private place to shoot auroras because it had a north view. The only disadvantage of the location was that it looked north into Grand Rapids, so it was not possible to see the dimmest of the auroras. Nighttime illumination by city lights has increased over the years, particularly with the brighter (yet much more efficient and energy-conserving) LED lights that are being installed now. Perhaps they can figure out ways to keep nighttime lighting to a minimum so that people can continue to come to this part of the state and still see the night sky.
On this particular night, the moon was nearly full, overwhelming the city lights. The moonlight makes dim auroras impossible to see in Minnesota when they are low on the horizon. For this evening, however, the auroras were bright enough to compete with the moonlight.
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| Auroras from Sherry's Arm on Pokegama Lake. |
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| Some tall pillars of auroras. |