Aurora Prospects 2012

Mountainsandh

muckish wrote: »

Looks super. How long will you be there. I might try and get over to Tromso next year. Should start a thread on Weather related photography tips.

I'll second that, I'm already gleaning bits of info from here, haven't tried photographing the night sky much so far but it's something I'd like to do, especially since I'm in a good isolated spot where the milky way is really in your face visible some nights. Even other things, like clouds etc... I'm so clueless don't ever do bracketing intentionally, I do have HDR on my Pentax K-x, but it's an easy as pie preset thingy you just select on the menu, the camera does the rest.

I'd love to go up there (whichever spot up there !) some day too. A cruise sounds brilliant, I like weather but I'd want some scenery too.

muckish

nilhg wrote: »

I don't understand why anyone would put their expensive gear through this kind of abuse. Could have been a very expensive point he was trying to make. Even a towel over the camera would offer some protection. And frost on the front of the lens (hopefully he has a filter on!)

muckish

muckish wrote: »

Should start a thread on Weather related photography tips.

Just running this past the moderators first on how to get it started with rules and formats etc..

Iancar29 wrote: »

Apparently they wer seen last night up in Inishowen ... Surely not with a Kp of 3?????

Not a chance last night. There is a natural airglow which can sometimes be confused with the aurora, especially in dark areas. Also a camera image will pick it up better than the unaided eye.

Unlike the aurora, the airglow is visible all over the globe. Though brightest 10-15 degrees above the horizon it fills the sky. It is strongly coloured yet it is without colour to our unaided eyes because its light is below their threshold of colour perception. From orbit it is a green bubble enclosing the world.

trogdor wrote: »

I've read quite a few dodgey sounding articles from irish papers. While technically correct i suppose they are very misguiding for people who know very little about the phenomenon. Pretty poor journalism in my opinion.

It's a bit Daily Mail-esque. No snowmageddon to write about, hurricanes are over, biblical floods have subsided from Dundrum, so what's next?

Pangea

Iancar29 wrote: »

Apparently they wer seen last night up in Inishowen ... Surely not with a Kp of 3?????

That rumour probably had its origins in this article
(See photo)
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2012/0108/breaking7.html

Although to be fair, it never stated when the photo was taken.

Iancar29

Pangea wrote: »

That rumour probably had its origins in this article
(See photo)
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2012/0108/breaking7.html

Although to be fair, it never stated when the photo was taken.

EXACTLY!!... i even emailed the main asking NICELY to send me proof of the date of the photo.



Look at this joke of a post now!

Facebook ... Donegal Weather Channel
WEATHER CONDITIONS TUESDAY NIGHT FOR THE NORTHERN LIGHTS 10/1/12
5:05PM

This evening the rain and drizzle will clear leading to long dry spells and breaks in the cloud with clear sky's in places mild with temperatures range 7 to 9 degree

BEST VIEWING SPOT FROM AROUND THE COUNTY
- The best place to see the lights is in the Ballyliffin and Malin around the Polan Beach Donegal
- up on a hill side out of the light of a town or village
- make sure there are no town lights effecting the view into the distance
- lights are in the north to a northwest direction

so guys happy hunting and hope you get a glimpse of them in the next coming weeks enjoy

FOR MORE NEWS CHECK OUT THE DONEGAL DAILY AT http://www.donegaldaily.com/ FIRST FOR NEWS

Is he having a laugh?

John mac

With a little bit of digging .. it was taken on 1st March 2011 at 23:47:25 ,,

exif info here

still a cool photo.

Iancar29

John mac wrote: »

With a little bit of digging .. it was taken on 1st March 2011 at 23:47:25 ,,

exif info here

still a cool photo.

I KNEW I SAW IT LAST YEAR!!!... Fair play man. ANd yes... its an amazing shot! , but saying it was taken recently was a joke!

muckish

Same night as this shot I took from just outside Letterkenny.



There's a hint of upper red aurora, but the green's weren't as intense as the other photo.

Iancar29

muckish wrote: »

Same night as this shot I took from just outside Letterkenny.



There's a hint of upper red aurora, but the green's weren't as intense as the other photo.

Lovely shot indeed. Yeah and i can see the hint of red. Can u remember the Kp Value that night... 7 was it?

muckish

Iancar29 wrote: »

Lovely shot indeed. Yeah and i can see the hint of red. Can u remember the Kp Value that night... 7 was it?

It was 6 but dropped down to 5 by the time I had got out. So the shot was at KP5, but with good crystal clear skies. So looking forward to a KP6 event or higher with clear skies!

John mac

http://www.gi.alaska.edu/AuroraForecast/2011/03/01/3
only a 3 according to this

Pangea

John mac wrote: »

With a little bit of digging .. it was taken on 1st March 2011 at 23:47:25 ,,

exif info here

still a cool photo.

Good looking out, I knew I seen it before aswell.
It goes to show that the media will believe anything these days without verification.

Pangea

I seen on a certain Donegal website yet again that some people said they seen the lights last night.
KP was only 2 last night though so I take it the reports were false?

muckish

Pangea wrote: »

I seen on a certain Donegal website yet again that some people said they seen the lights last night.
KP was only 2 last night though so I take it the reports were false?

An 100% cloud cover as well. Maybe a few too many drinks were involved...

And the grammer in the "info on the aurora" section at the end of that Article leaves a lot to be desired. No sources for the alleged sightings as well.

muckish

A strong 1hour long M class flare today which seems to be Earth directed. Geomag storm predicted for the late hours of Jan 21st. Good possibilty it will be seen over northern parts of Ireland at least, weather permitting.

will keep ye posted

eskimocat

Maybe that's what my Mum was talking about earlier today. She was telling me that there is people travelling, from all over Ireland, to Donegal to see the Northern Lights. I checked the KP range for the 24 hour period and there was nothing higher than a possible KP1. She was happy enough then, cause there was lots of clouds at the time. Will pass on the good news... Thanks

muckish

eskimocat wrote: »

Maybe that's what my Mum was talking about earlier today. She was telling me that there is people travelling, from all over Ireland, to Donegal to see the Northern Lights. I checked the KP range for the 24 hour period and there was nothing higher than a possible KP1. She was happy enough then, cause there was lots of clouds at the time. Will pass on the good news... Thanks

Keep an eye on the KP values. They need to reach at least 5 to be visible here. There's a lot of bad press out there at the moment in relation to seeing the northern lights from Donegal.

eskimocat

muckish wrote: »

Keep an eye on the KP values. They need to reach at least 5 to be visible here. There's a lot of bad press out there at the moment in relation to seeing the northern lights from Donegal.

Yes, we were talking about that. (Educating Mother so thank you for educating me!)

Its such a shame, as people believe the reports in good faith. Hopefully some of those travelling hang around till late on the 21st and get rewarded for their effort. Hopefully will be there myself, looking up

Lucky Iancar, this should fit in nicely to his trip, shouldn't it? Can't wait to see the pics.

Strangegravy

eskimocat wrote: »

Lucky Iancar, this should fit in nicely to his trip, shouldn't it? Can't wait to see the pics.

Has he gone already? If so he has timed it to absolute perfection. It's been so quiet for weeks and now as soon as he goes.. Booooom!

Looking forward to the pic's myself now..

fizzycyst

Strangegravy wrote: »

Has he gone already? If so he has timed it to absolute perfection. It's been so quiet for weeks and now as soon as he goes.. Booooom!

Looking forward to the pic's myself now..

He's going tomorrow according to bookface, so yeah, good timing, looking forward to the pics.

Iancar29

eskimocat wrote: »

Yes, we were talking about that. (Educating Mother so thank you for educating me!)

Its such a shame, as people believe the reports in good faith. Hopefully some of those travelling hang around till late on the 21st and get rewarded for their effort. Hopefully will be there myself, looking up

I was onto Kenneth the DOnegal weather FB host... i told him that at the time there was no chance that the reports where the Auroras... so he asked for some help addressing the photos he recieved... they wer nothing but a helicopter/plane being exposed for a few seconds leaving a streak . Some mad one start trolling towards me saying i didnt know what i was talking about. SHE was Crazy ! hahaha

Lucky Iancar, this should fit in nicely to his trip, shouldn't it? Can't wait to see the pics.

I was onto Kenneth the DOnegal weather FB host... i told him that at the time there was no chance that the reports where the Auroras... so he asked for some help addressing the photos he recieved... they wer nothing but a helicopter/plane being exposed for a few seconds leaving a streak . Some mad one start trolling towards me saying i didnt know what i was talking about. SHE was Crazy ! hahaha

Strangegravy wrote: »

Has he gone already? If so he has timed it to absolute perfection. It's been so quiet for weeks and now as soon as he goes.. Booooom!

Looking forward to the pic's myself now..

fizzycyst wrote: »

He's going tomorrow according to bookface, so yeah, good timing, looking forward to the pics.

Told yas... AMAZON had a great offer... "Purchase CME 2 months in advanced and get it delivered at your doorstep "

Thanks folks,
Hopefully get some mind blowing pictures to show yas all !!

Elmer Blooker

Aurora alert this weekend
Incoming CME.
http://spaceweather.com/

bungaro79

total noob here when it comes to weather stuff, haven't a clue what a kp value is but would love to see the northern lights and heard this weekend is supposed to be perfect conditions. i'm down in cork so will there be a chance i'll get them down here (cloud dependant of course)?? any advice for ways to see them better, saw someone mention something in this thread about not having mountains in the horizon?? and last question is assuming its a clear night, is it just a waiting game or do they appear very late or in the evening or what??
thanks!!

eskimocat

bungaro79 wrote: »

total noob here when it comes to weather stuff, haven't a clue what a kp value is but would love to see the northern lights and heard this weekend is supposed to be perfect conditions. i'm down in cork so will there be a chance i'll get them down here (cloud dependant of course)?? any advice for ways to see them better, saw someone mention something in this thread about not having mountains in the horizon?? and last question is assuming its a clear night, is it just a waiting game or do they appear very late or in the evening or what??
thanks!!

Keep an eye on this website.
http://spaceweather.com/

Beneath the map of the world you can select Europe so see what is likely. To see the northern lights in Cork you would be looking at a KP value of 7-8, I think.. (Vaguely in the back of my mind, please correct me if i am wrong, Muckish)

Typically they need to be over 5 for Donegal.

John mac

http://www.gi.alaska.edu/AuroraForecast

Forecaster Comments: Three solar events occurred on Jan 18/19, 2012. The first two were small and of short duration. The last one was a coronal mass ejection associated with a long-duration solar flare from the northeast quadrant of the Sun. The location is such that the event is not facing Earth directly, but the intensity, duration and development are such that it will lead to increased auroral activity on this weekend.

The shock and the effects should reach Earth as early as 6 am GMT the 21st. That is approximately 10 hours from the time of this message. We should expect K=4 or greater auroral activity starting late on the night of the 20th in Alaska and North America and on the 21st in Russia and Europe.

Some predictions are for late on the 21st and early on the 22nd (UT or GMT). Watch the short term forecast with a map of your area for a one hour warning.
Forecasted by Charles Deehr
Time of Prediction: Thursday, January 19

looks like sat evening might do it if we get some clear skies!.

Ian should get some good shots..

Pa ElGrande

from spaceweather.com

INCOMING CME: Active sunspot 1401 erupted yesterday, Jan. 19th around 16:30 UT, producing an M3-class solar flare and a full-halo coronal mass ejection (CME). The Solar and Heliospheric Observatory recorded the cloud expanding almost directly toward Earth:

Analysts at the Goddard Space Weather Lab say strong geomagnetic storms are possible when the cloud arrives this weekend. Their animated forecast track predicts an impact on Jan. 21st at 22:30 UT (+/- 7 hrs). Aurora alerts: text, voice.

The cloud is also heading for Mars, due to hit the Red Planet on Jan. 24th. NASA's Curiosity rover, en route to Mars now, is equipped to study solar storms and might be able to detect a change in the energetic particle environment when the CME passes by.

more images: from the Charlie Bates Solar Astronomy Project of Atlanta, GA; from Theo Ramakers of Social Circle, GA; from Jim Haklar of Edison, New Jersey; from Zach, Annissa, and Annie of The G.W. Hinckley School in Hinckley, Maine

geetar

what does this mean for weather?

emo72

geetar wrote: »

what does this mean for weather?

pretty colours in the sky:)

Trogdor

Threads merged so as to keep all the aurora discussion together.

JJJJNR

Bump. anyone see anything.