Did you miss the Northern Lights last night? More clear weather and good opportunities for seeing remnants of a solar storm over Bergen have been reported.
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Night to Thursday, Christina Zelow Lundquist got a beautiful view from Strandafjellet by Løvstakken.
– It’s so mysterious. You kind of never know what shapes and colors will come, and how the dance will be in the sky, says Zelow Lundquist.
In recent days, there have been several solar storms, and there are remnants of these that hit the earth these days. Gas and magnetic fields are thrown from the sun, hitting the atmosphere at high speed.
Thursday evening and night to Friday, there are again good opportunities to see the northern lights in Bergen, confirms researcher at the Norwegian Space Center, Pål Brekke.
At the same time, the meteorologists report clear weather on Thursday night.
– It clearly looks like tonight. Should the northern lights appear, there are good opportunities in the whole of Western Norway south of Stadt, says on-duty meteorologist Roar Inge Hansen at Stormgeo.
Difficult to notify
The Northern Lights forecast does not always strike. It can be both more spectacular than expected, and it can be an anticlimax.
– It is difficult to predict in advance how strong the northern lights will be, Brekke explains.
Brekke says it has to do with the direction of the solar storm’s magnetic field.
If the solar field’s magnetic field has the same direction as the earth’s, you will not get the full effect. If they have the opposite direction, you get a coupling and a powerful geomagnetic storm, Brekke explains
He compares it to a classic Brio toy train with magnets on.
– If you try to put two sides together with the same magnetic pole, they just bounce away.
–The direction of the magnetic field is not known until about an hour before it hits the earth’s magnetic field. The Northern Lights warning is twisted, Brekke explains.
– Yesterday we announced a KP index of seven, but I do not think it came higher than four-five.
The CP index is explained by the Norwegian Meteorological Institute as a scale from 0–9 which indicates the intensity of the northern lights and can be used to predict how far towards the equator the light is visible.
According to Yr.no, the KP index for Bergen is Thursday night at five, and will rise to six at fifty on Friday night.
Recommend going to Ulriken
There are a few hours of meandering on the northern lights forecast, Brekke explains.
– You have to have a little patience and not give up at ten o’clock. Maybe it’s coming at twelve, one, two. It typically lasts only half an hour. It’s coming in waves, and it’s important to be out right then.
–It is also important to get away from the city center if you want to see the northern lights well. In the city, the street lights are reflected in small water vapor particles in the sky.
– It is important to get away from buildings and street lights, preferably a place you can see to the north, as the light is often seen on the northern horizon. Ulriken is fantastic to use. The mountain is the best place, then you also see a lot of stars, says Brekke.
Lundquist brought chocolate and the camera to Strandafjelelt on Thursday night. Tonight she is going out again, and encourages others to consider the same.
– It has been a long time since such strong northern lights have been reported as now. It is definitely worth sitting awake extra long at night.
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