We took an unplanned budget flight to Tromsø this weekend in order to chase the Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights). According to my GPS, Tromsø is located at 69°40'1.31"N, 18°57'14.15"E which places it over 400km into the artic circle (little wonder, then, that it witnesses the midnight sun in summer and 24hr darkness in the winter).
In order to capture the lights at their best, I have been making use of the excellent Solar Wind/Geomagnetic Activity Plot Forecast provided by the Geophysical Institute. Although, we haven’t seen any lights yet, we were out in the wilderness last night taking shots of the sublime snow capped mountains (see above).
By night-time, the temperature managed to drop to -12c and the result was a completely frozen tripod and cable release. Whilst I have had my cameras specially prepared for the cold, it is important not to touch metal bodies and tripod legs in such extreme temperatures for fear of sticking to the darn things!
Aurora watch continues tonight…
