Capturing the Enigmatic STEVE: Stunning Photos of the Northern Lights and Milky Way from Manitoba’s Solar Storm

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STEVE walks the Milky Way as seen from Manitoba, Canada. | Credit: Justin Anderson, High Hopes Aurora
During a brief solar storm on the night of July 31st to August 1st, full-time aurora rider Justin Anderson proved that “being in the right place at the right time” pays off big when it comes to hunt for the northern lights.
“When I was editing pictures inside, I noticed that our sky camera was recording STEVE. “I immediately went back outside and took another picture of our warehouse,” Anderson told Space.com via email.
Anderson’s impressive photo shows STEVE twisting and turning against a beautiful backdrop of the Milky Way. Anderson also captures the dynamic northern lights putting on a stunning display.
Not everyone is lucky enough to see STEVE, let alone catch him on camera. In fact, this strange phenomenon was only officially discovered between 2015 and 2016 by citizen scientists according to the first study published on STEVE in Science Advances in 2018.
However, this was not the first time Anderson met STEVE. “I have photographed and filmed STEVE several times,” Anderson told Space.com. Anderson’s work, along with that of other enthusiastic aurora cyclists, was used to study STEVE, their findings published in the journal Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society.
A long red stream of light stretches across the night sky, in the background the Milky Way can be seen as a thick band of stars from the top of the image to the horizon.
Although STEVE is often accompanied by the aurora, the two phenomena are not the same.
Auroras are caused by electrically charged particles entering the Earth’s atmosphere, stimulating gases, and causing them to emit light when they return to their original energy state. These lights produce the northern lights (also known as aurora borealis) in the Northern Hemisphere and the southern lights (also known as aurora australis) in the Southern Hemisphere.
Meanwhile STEVE, short for Strong Thermal Evaporation Velocity Enhancement, is created when solar emissions, particularly fast-moving plasma streams heat gases in the upper atmosphere. STEVE is basically a hot, glowing gas.
The northern lights appear as bands of purple and green light in the sky, like a curtain stretching from the stars. The shady trees are in the foreground.
Although STEVE has to share the sky with bright and colorful auroras, it can stand alone, creating an attractive show for a more exclusive audience because this phenomenon does not appear to just anyone.
“Watching it twist and decorate the background of the Milky Way is a unique experience,” continued Anderson.
Related: Where and how to photograph the aurora
The green light curtain was covered with purple light curtains as far as the eye could see, the whole sky was filled with color. The shade trees are on the left side of the picture.
Before STEVE appeared, Anderson was enjoying the storm, capturing amazing images and detailed pictures of the aurora. However, Anderson had to act quickly.
Related stories:
– Where and how to raise the aurora
– How to photograph the Milky Way: A guide for beginners and enthusiasts
– The best equipment for Aurora photos
“The aurora photo was taken during a brief substorm when the aurora became very intense,” Anderson continued.
“It was so clear to the naked eye, even my iPhone camera was able to capture it in real-time video,” Anderson said.
To see more of Justin Anderson’s work, visit High Hopes Aurora.
Editor’s note: If you’ve captured an amazing photo or video of the northern lights (or southern lights!) and want to share it with Space.com for a possible story, send photos, comments about your comments, location, and permission to use to [email protected].