Autumn Aurora

September has been a great month for the northern lights display.  Soon after darkness fell back in the northern sky, the aurora began appearing in the Interior of Alaska.  I've already seen the great aurora several nights in last few weeks.  As I understand it, when the sun's activity is high, it releases solar flares that impact with the atmosphere.  During those times, magnificent northern lights dance across the sky. 

 

The best part of viewing the northern lights at this time of the year is the weather is still mild.  It has been in the 30s - 50s; warm enough to be outdoors.  I dress with a light jacket and regular hiking boots unlike wearing a big heavy coat with layers inside, ski pants, and bunny boots at -20 degrees.  Waiting to see the aurora outside is much easier and more fun before serious winter arrives.

It was the night before the Harvest Moon, I was heading to a small lake where I planned to set up my camera.  The northern lights were already stretched across the zenith.  A nearly full moon lit up the trail all way to the lake.  The moonlight was incredibly bright; I didn't even need to use my flashlight on the trail through a birch forest!  Those autumn birch were glowing in orange- gold under the moonlight.

It was about 30 degrees, a bit of cold in the air.Mist drifted on the surface of the lake.The lake was still like a mirror, reflecting the autumn colored hill and stars.The whole surrounding was silent in this remote landscape.

I set up my camera and waited for awhile... the faint aurora was in the sky over the millions of stars...  After a while, more aurora showed up on the other side of the sky.  It was a faint white line in the beginning, then slowly brightened to neon green... then moving and waving into the horizon.  At one point, the pink/purple lights were blinking along with the main stream of neon green.  After the moving lights came down, faint green bands of lights appeared and stayed for a long time.  The fall-colored hillside was glowing under the bright moon.

It was peaceful...
surrounded by wooded hillsides
only the sounds of a creek...
under a clear sky with countless stars... 
The aurora was appearing and disappearing... 
I was alone in this silent dream.  That was one of the moments, I've felt closest to mother nature.

Autumn Falls on the Interior Alaska

In the 3rd week of August, some of the Birch leaves (Birch looks just like aspen) began turning yellow. Within a few days, the yellow color was spreading everywhere.  In the interior Alaska, the seasonal change comes very quickly!   It was only 3 months ago when fresh green over took the hillside; and while I was neglecting to upload new posts, the summer is already over!

 In early September, we are already in Autumn.  The surrounding mountains are covered with golden yellow leaves, and some of the small plants on the ground are turning to bright red.  Berries are ripe, the air is crisp, and there are many beautiful days in row!  Fall is another delightful season in Alaska.

The long daylight during summer gradually shortens...  Sunset is around 9pm at this time of the year;  We no longer have a "midnight sun."  The Northern lights have started dancing in the dark sky again...  Animals are urge to prepare for the coming winter...   Summer's ending is always sad.  At the same time, I'm excited as another Aurora season begins.

Here are some more fall colors images...

Blaze in the Zenith: The Northern Lights

Spectacular Northern Lights occur at the time of magnetic storms, and when the sun's activity releases solar flares.

In early March, another amazing Aurora was displayed for two nights! The lights were very bright; clear and vivid even in the southern parts of Alaska!

Here in the interior Alaska, right below the Arctic Circle, the brilliant neon green was a waving tapestry of light draped across a nearly full moon.

The huge zenithal fires blazed the entire sky with the edges displaying a rarely seen purple color! The amazing Northern lights show went on and on... At its zenith, the Aurora corona appeared like fireworks!

In older times, Alaskan Natives believed countless myths about the Northern Lights. Many of them feared the active display of the Aurora. Some believed that the Aurora were the spirits of dead ancestors playing a ball game with a walrus skull. Interesting, isn't it?

My short photography excursion will be coming soon. I'll take another Alaska Marine Highway ferry from Whittier to Juneau at the end of April offering many opportunities for dramatic landscapes. I will then explore Sitka, an historic southeast Alaska town, for a week in early May. I'll keep updating new photos and stories in this blog. Please check back soon.

Sunset Flight - Denali View!

One winter evening, I was on a small airplane flying outside of Fairbanks. Fairbanks is the second largest city in Alaska, but the city is surrounded with a vast wilderness.

The plane was following along the winding Chena River; frozen and snow covered... the whole area is wild backcountry; hard to see any human imprint. Mountain after mountain spread on all sides.

The sun was about to set on the horizon, lighting up the rugged Alaska Range... The silhouette of Denali (Mount McKinley - the highest peak in the North America) appeared beyond the mountains in the dreamy orange light! It was a gift for the day!

Northern Lights, Show Time!

Photographing the Northern Lights is a challenging commitment. While sunrise and sunset is predictable, the Northern Lights may appear any time during a long dark night, normally late night to early morning. Sometimes, even when the sky is clear and the "Aurora Forecast" says "Active" the lights still don't appear... I continued checking the north sky during the long cold, sub zero, nights without success. I began to wonder if I really would see the spectacular Aurora show this winter?

In early February, the amazing Auroras were on display for 2 nights. It began in the early evening on Feb 4th. A green arch appeared in the north sky over a mountain. The arched lights moved very slowly and stayed for a long while. Suddenly the left end of the arch curled into a small circle! Then a White green flame of lights appeared from behind the mountain at the right end of the arch, amazing!!

The "show" continued all night... At its peak, a wide neon green ribbon of light moved through the zenith while another wide green line moved in the northern side of the sky... and large white, milky way like, lights filled the southern the sky! What a spectacular light show, illuminating the entire sky!

On Feb 5th I went up the mountain. I was rewarded with an arch in the northern sky early in the night. Then large flames of bright lights appeared from the horizon to the west ... the lights moved like a big fire reaching up to the zenith.

The tip of the lights were swirling fast over my head! Next a light, resembling the head of a snake, emerged from the large swirl and raced across the sky! It all happened unbelievably fast!

Soon, another curtain of fast waving lights came out of the northern sky. In this appearance the lights were literally "Dancing Lights." Active Auroras coming and going, like a huge fire in the sky, waving and dancing, curtain call, after curtain call, entertaining, amusing and amazing their audience for hours.

Slowly, the dancing lights disappeared leaving faint sheets of light spread out all over the sky, Lighting up even the southern sky, allowing me the rare opportunity to see the Aurora with Orion.

Ice "Hotel" Museum

I've been focusing on the natural beauties in Alaska, but there is amazing ice art created from the mother nature.

Aurora Ice Museum is located about 60 miles north of Fairbanks, at Chena Hot Springs. The indoor museum is decorated with gothic architecture, chandeliers, and more than 80 sculptures all created in amazing detail, with ice!

There are four hotel rooms within the museum. Each room with a different theme: Polar Bear, Christmas, Turret, and the Queen. One of the rooms even has an ice outhouse! Ice Museum was originally called "Ice Hotel," however, the building doesn't meet the fire code - no sprinklers - so they were forced to rename it "Ice Museum." Fire sprinklers in a Ice Hotel? Sounds like a joke! Anyway, guests can still stay at an ice room if they are willing to pay the $575 per night fee. It comes with a regular hotel room (just in case), warm sleeping bags, and the whole ice museum to themselves all night! Note: the ice outhouse is a part of art, guests have to use a real bathroom in their regular hotel room.

The “Ice Bar” at the center of the Ice Museum is very popular. The counter and bar stools are all carved from Ice. They even serve "Appletini" in a ice carved martini glass!

In addition to the ice rooms and bar, there are about 80 ice sculptures in the “Ice museum”. Large knights the horseback, a two-story ice castle tower, an ice chess set and more... all calved using the natural ice from a pond nearby. The Ice Sculptures were carved by World Champion Ice Carvers: Steve & Heather Brice with amazing details. Visiting the Ice Museum always brightens my days during the long days of the cold dark winter.

Rose Color Moments in Arctic North

Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights) are special in winter in the north. Winter alpenglow is another special lights in Alaska. During a long winter, day lights are short in Arctic North. On December 21, the winter solstice, we only see 3.5 hours of the day light plus a few hours of dim light in Fairbanks area in Alaska. The days are gradually getting longer in January... sunrise is 10:30am and sunset is 3:30pm in the mid January. There has not been any direct sun lights since mid November.

In this northern latitude, sun only stays right above the horizon for a few hours, moves only a short distance, and then set under the earth... The low angle sun lights up the snowy mountain peaks and paints to rose pink. In the most part of world, alpenglow last only for a several minutes; in the north, alpenglow last for a long hours! The bright pink lights slowly shifts to northwestern peaks to northeastern peaks for 3-4 hours until it disappears! A Photographers' dream moment lasts a few hours.

Photographing in sub zero climate is a challenging... Layers of clothing and face mask would reduces ones mobility... and tripods are icy cold. Setting up the camera with grabs is a bit of frustrating work... Then, standing one place for a while, toes and finger tips start feeling pain from the cold. Eye lashes start frosting... after 10 min, the camera and tripod are frost covered! Holding a filter by hand is a painful work in -20 degree... Soon, time to pack up and move on.

Despite of the cold weather, I feel privileged to explore the vast wilderness under the low angle lights. The frosted trees are the art of mother nature.