Student Blog
The first time I saw Northern Lights by Annalotta
Since I am really into astronomy, I always wanted to see the Northern Lights. Sometimes I looked through some pictures on the internet or I watched documentaries and was impressed by these wonderful spectacles.
When I found out that I would stay in northern BC for half a year, I was very excited about seeing aurora borealis. However, since the town is only a few degrees northward than a city where I lived in Germany, I didn’t have much hope.
One night, my host mother told me that a friend – who had seen the Northern Lights the last night – had written to her. Unfortunately, she had seen the message too late. I was very surprised and totally excited but at the same time sad that I couldn’t see them. I did some research and then downloaded various apps that should warn you as soon as there is a high probability of seeing the Polar Lights.
When my host mother came home the next day, she said I should come quickly, as she had seen the Northern Lights out of the car. I put on my winter jacket as fast as I could and ran into the garden. The house of my host family is far away from everything else, so you can see very far without being disturbed by the light of the neighboring houses. The horizon to the north was a little brighter than usual. It was not what I had imagined of the Northern Lights - it was more like a bright cloud of fog. However, when I took a photo with 10 seconds exposure, it looked completely different. In the photo, the green color comes out nicely and I was totally happy to have seen and photographed the Polar Lights.
From now on, every night before going to bed, I look outside to look if I can see the Northern Lights. I really hope to see them again – and then maybe with more color and moving.
Blog post and photo submitted by Annalotta, a grade 11 student from Germany currently studying at Nechako Valley Secondary School in Vanderhoof, BC.