pfogal's photostream

In April of 2009, CANDAC held what we called the Northern Experience Program, that took students and teachers into the High Arctic to show them what it was all about. On the first night, we were treated to a fine display of the Aurora Borealis.

Alison Gilbert, one of the teachers on the NEP said it best. What follows is hers, and hers alone.

Aurora borealis; a firefly waltz.

Nestled among down and a fur-lined parka I fixated on the dark landscape. Expecting quick, sharp movements or a flurry of electric light I was surprised by the slow waltz across the sky. The organic glow reminded me of fireflies bobbing through the reeds in Africa. Those tiny lime lights were now en masse in the sky. The glowing trail stretched the starry backdrop.

Pentax K10d with the smc Pentax DA16-45 F4 shot at 30s, F4, iso400

Aurora above Yellowknife, NWT

Pentax K10d with the smc Pentax DA16-45 F4 shot at 30s, F4, iso400

More auroral arcs. This one looks like the dragonfly chasing its tail

Auroral swoops. Shot near Yellowknife NWT on the first day of the CANDAC Northern Experience program.

Pentax K10d with the smc Pentax DA16-45 F4 shot at 30s, F4, 100iso

The next in the sequence.