Northern lights, you’re having a laugh? I have spent a small fortune over the last few months chasing this elusive phenomenon around the Arctic Circle and it’s no joke! From Iceland to Northern Norway, and apart from a glimmer of green from the airplane, which doesn’t count, I have yet to see them! It all started with the prediction that the sun was about to reverse its magnetic polarity. The active phase of its cycle was about to begin, meaning that the Northern Lights would be at their most visible for 11 years!
It isn’t as if I haven’t done the research, signing up to aurora alerts which aim to predict the likelihood of activity, does anyone understand those websites? And following the weather forecasts, because you need to have clear skies, right?
So when I received an email notification that there had been solar flares I immediately looked up cheap flights to Iceland, whilst simultaneously looking up the weather forecast and aurora predictions. The prediction was only a 2 for Iceland, with Northern America looking highly likely, but decided a trip to Alaska was a little extreme – even for a desperate Aurora hunter like me!
I was beginning to think that the Aurora Borealis is an overblown, rarely seen force of nature used to lure tourists to cold countries. Having taken the family to Reykjavik in November and braving the Arctic seas in sub zero temperatures in February, I arrived at work this morning to the news that the Northern Lights had given a rare and spectacular display in the UK last night, from Scotland to as far south as Jersey!
BBC News: Ollie Hughes travelled from Edinburgh to Pitlochry at midnight to catch a glimpse of the lights and took this picture.
Check out more images of the Northern Lights on our Pinterest Board and read my blog Mums Going to Iceland to find out if I get to see the Northern Lights!
