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Old 09-30-2016, 09:44 PM
 
63 posts, read 68,683 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Frostnip View Post
Kp can be as high as it likes - if the Bz doesn't turn, there won't be much dramatic visible northern lights activity. Unfortunately Bz is not readily forecast like the K-index is.

Shame to think of all that perfectly good solar wind going to waste because the magnetic field isn't cooperating!
In MRI physics, Bz (B0) is the constant electromagnetic field perpendicular to the bore of the magnet, the z axis, so I'll assume that Bz in this case is the magnetic field strength. Kp I have no idea what it is.. solar wind activity? The things you need to read up on when you move to AK!
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Old 10-01-2016, 01:53 PM
 
Location: Not far from Fairbanks, AK
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Drove to Summit Lake hoping to take some photos of the Auroras, but they were not as bright and colorful as I expected. Will give it another try tonight, but close to Fairbanks.
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Old 10-01-2016, 01:59 PM
 
Location: Not far from Fairbanks, AK
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Quote:
Originally Posted by notreesininceland View Post
Exposure also depends on whether the moon is out and the focal length. The thumb rule for exposure time is 400/mm (where mm is the focal length) if you do not want to see star trails. These days most DSLR bodies have made enough progress in high ISO performance that shooting at ISO1600 is no issue at all.
For cleaner images I seldom go past 600 ISO, most times around 400-600. Prefer fast wide-angle lenses with FF cameras, and short exposures (8-10 seconds). Nothing wrong with high ISO, specially if you want to include the landscape in the image, but for some reason I prefer to expose the light and show the foreground as little as possible.
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Old 10-02-2016, 01:18 AM
 
Location: PHX -> ATL
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Wait but October just started? Does it normally start this early in October? I thought the northern lights were later.

Also I'm posting so that I could potentially see some pictures if you get any. That would be cool.
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Old 10-02-2016, 01:35 AM
 
Location: Not far from Fairbanks, AK
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Prickly Pear View Post
Wait but October just started? Does it normally start this early in October? I thought the northern lights were later.

Also I'm posting so that I could potentially see some pictures if you get any. That would be cool.
The Auroras are active all year long. Since we have so much daylight in Alaska during the summer, one can't see them until August one can see them as it gets darker. One can usually see the Auroras from August or September to March or April.

By the way, they were quite boring tonight.
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Old 10-02-2016, 08:29 AM
 
Location: Naptowne, Alaska
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Prickly Pear View Post
Wait but October just started? Does it normally start this early in October? I thought the northern lights were later.
If you look in the photo thread...you will see some recent shots from September 1st! It was blazing!
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Old 10-02-2016, 02:22 PM
 
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They were out in southern SE again last night. Was eavesdropping at a table close to mine last night at dinner and one of the women was saying she'd been here most her life and only saw them one other time.

ETA I've seen them a few times in southern SE; just thought I'd say that before the inevitable post comes along with a link to some website that "proves" that the aurora has been visible from Ketchikan more than twice (it wasn't meant to be a definitive statement; just someone's personal experience). That's the way this forum seems to be going lately, and I wanted to make it clear.

Last edited by Metlakatla; 10-02-2016 at 03:26 PM..
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Old 10-02-2016, 03:37 PM
 
63 posts, read 68,683 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RayinAK View Post
The Auroras are active all year long. Since we have so much daylight in Alaska during the summer, one can't see them until August one can see them as it gets darker. One can usually see the Auroras from August or September to March or April.

By the way, they were quite boring tonight.
Agreed. Forecast said clear but I'd say it was "cloudy". Went up to Murphy Dome (don't know if you're familiar), and only saw short displays. Ahh.. next time. I think mittens will be essential come Nov-Feb.
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Old 10-02-2016, 08:50 PM
 
Location: PHX -> ATL
6,311 posts, read 6,819,011 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RayinAK View Post
The Auroras are active all year long. Since we have so much daylight in Alaska during the summer, one can't see them until August one can see them as it gets darker. One can usually see the Auroras from August or September to March or April.

By the way, they were quite boring tonight.
Man I just... Do you want to trade?? I have ALWAYS wanted to see them in person. One day...

I'll get to look at those boring auroras and you can look at some, uhh, sunsets. Those are really pretty here but sometimes they are "boring" Too late for haboobs unfortunately. Or watch two rattlesnakes fight each other, that's pretty exciting.
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Old 10-02-2016, 10:00 PM
 
Location: Not far from Fairbanks, AK
20,293 posts, read 37,194,364 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Re3iRtH View Post
Agreed. Forecast said clear but I'd say it was "cloudy". Went up to Murphy Dome (don't know if you're familiar), and only saw short displays. Ahh.. next time. I think mittens will be essential come Nov-Feb.
Yes, it will be cold Anyway, right now the weather is just about perfect for the Auroras at Chena Lakes or any other place where there is open water. Last September I took some very nice photos at Chena Lakes. It's also pretty nice temperature-wise by the end of winter (by March or so). But there is nothing we can do if the Auroras don't show, and I have gotten spoiled in recent years with Auroras that are bright and show lots of colors.

September last year:




November, I believe:
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