So last night I was sitting on my bed typing away at a response paper for Multicultural Education. It was around 10:30 PM when I heard my roommate yell out "I CAN SEE THEM FROM MY WINDOW!" I knew right away that she was talking about the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis). My room has a tiny window with no view of anything but trees. I ran to her room and saw a very faint light green ray in the sky. It wasn't too exciting compared to the last time I saw the lights (ie the last post). I hopped downstairs and put on my warm winter boots anyways. I didn't want to miss a single showing of the lights. To my surprise, when I stepped out onto the sidewalk the sky above had a massive green stripe across it. I ran inside and yelled to my roommates that the best of the lights were on the opposite side of the house.
On the far side of the housing parking lot there is a playground. There are fewer lights around it so we decided it would be the best option for watching the show. The lights only got brighter. It's the craziest thing to see because the entire time my mind was trying to absorb it. The thick green bands bounced and danced across the sky showing hints of red at times. I'm not sure there is anything more amazing to see in the whole world. We know what causes it but yet it is still mysterious. NASA makes predictions on how strong they will be but you never know how they will really appear until they catch you completely off guard.
(This picture really does nothing for the lights. It was so much more amazing in person!)Apparently, the solar storm that created the Aurora was so strong that the lights could be seen in New york City (that is, if you could see through the city lights and smog). Below are some more pictures. I have to add here that I did not take any of these pictures. They are from Yosuke Sano's collection, as my camera doesn't do well in the dark.
All of these were taken in Juneau."Those who dance are considered insane by those who cannot hear the music."
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