Aurora Borealis

Västergötland and Småland in south Sweden aren't generally associated with auroras, but sometimes it gets all the way down here. Auroras can develop and change very fast. You need to be alert when it's on. However, some of the pictures are taken further to the north.



28/9 2016: A large coronal hole on the sun produces several nights with auroras. This night Kp reaches 6, and I go to Tibro where it cleares up at 21 in the evening. A great lightshow starts an our later. 


2/9 2016: With a good aurora forecast, after work on friday afternoon I take my car, going north. Just before it gets really dark, me and my camera are ready at the lake Bergsjön southwest of Söderhamn. The Kp index is only 3 to begin with, but half an hour later it climbs to over 4 and the aurora gets aktive. 



6/1 2016: I have taken a flight up to Bodø in the north of Norway, to try and get a "real" Aurora from north of the polar circle. At first I'm dissapointed, low Kp and almost nothing to see. But after a while the aurora is on, and I get a lightshow better than anything I have seen before!



21/12 2015: The probability to find an aurora this night was slim. A CME hit Earth last night but should subside during the day. Furthermore, almost all Sweden is covered in clouds. But I manage to find an opening in the clouds, and Kp reaches an unbelievable 8! Towards 01:00 it really gets going, and I get these pictures.



10/10 2015: Time for a conference with amateur astronomers in Sundsvall, further up in the north. At night I go to Härnösand, getting this aurora. The Kp index is around 3.



7/10 2015: Early in the day Kp reaches 6, and all my expectations are fullfilled as it climbes to 7 in the evening! There are auroras not only in the north, but in the west, and up in the zenith. What a wonderful night!
Later on the aurora subsides, but get a deeper green color.



7/9 2015: This was an incredible night! Kp rises to 6 and I drive north to reach clear skies. After getting to Tanumshede, the auroras develop fast and I get a lightshow, as good as I have ever seen before!



15/8 2015: Following a rather weak CME, Kp index reaches 7 during the day! Towards evening it's not as strong anymore, but I drive north to Tibro to see what I can get. Kp is around 5.



16/8 2015: The sunwind continues on its second day.



21/12 2014: This time I'm in the company of Dante, from Stockholm. We go to the lake Bergviken southwest of Söderhamn. The weather provides a window of a few hours, while a CME strikes with a slow but dense stream. The result is a beautiful aurora, developing as the clouds begin to move in. Kp approaches 4 when we finally give up. 



12/9 2014: Following an X-flare on the Sun, directed straight towards Earth, expectations are high in spite of an almost full Moon. As the CME strikes towards evening, a cold front spreads a cloud layer over Grimsås. I drive north, 350km to the Norwegian border at Svinesund. There I reach  clear skies, north of the cold front. I am more than pleased that I made this journey! Kp-index has now reached 7 (G3)! All pictures are taken towards the Norwegian side.



2/10 2013: This one was unexpected! A geomagetic storm (G2) is in progress during the day, but towards evening the Kp-index drops to 3, and I have no great expectations. A weak aurora can be seen around 20.00. But after 22.00 this happens. A nice lightshow even with a Kp of only 3,67! (It must have been higher locally.) Yet another "wonderful evening".



17/3 2013: The "wonderful evening", according to Ulf Jonsson from Luleå (northern Sweden). A geomagnetic storm G2 (Kp=6) is in full rage. Already at dusk the show begins, with bright lightpillars not only to the north, but to the east and high in the sky. Violet, green and blue can clearly be seen with the naked eye. After half an hour it calms down to a steady green glow to the north. About 23.00 it escalates again with new pillars of light, but this time green and only to the north.





12/11 2012: This was a most successful evening. After taking pictures of Pacman Nebula with my telescope, I carry it inside close to midnight. I go for a ride with my car to look for auroras, since the Kp-index has climbed to 4 now. The sky has a bright green glow to the north and I take my very first aurora pictures!