Claudia

Thanks George wx for the explanation. Steavestorms I am SSSsssssooooo jealous !!!!!!! I didnt receive any email notification that there would be an aura and had given up actively looking some time ago Also in Norfolk Mum saw your photograph on the news and told me only way I found out You can see it on iplayer just fast forward to near the end http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01b4fgs/Look_East_East_23_01_2012/

I did wonder about it being a firework backtrack but I dont know of one that would travel across the sky lighting it up, they are normally just up at an angle multiply or not and down !? I tried some of these societies once when I was trying to find a moon positioning compass (still looking, no I dont want a electronic thing but thank you they do look good) and did not find them helpful in fact not one bothered to reply so I cant say I would bother again. Probably better off asking the milkman he is around that time :o) Did not know that, I thought that all the debris always burnt up, got to be more careful when I go out.

I have been trying to find any reference to a fireball this morning at 6.48am ( I have written the time down and will verify if necessary) I was in bed facing my curtains with my eyes shut, I could see it had become light quickly opened them and it was bright outside the curtains, opened them and a bright streak went towards the sea on the Norfolk / Suffolk boarder and the surrounding sky was lit up but not right down to the horizon ! No I had not been drinking. Please if anyone has found any mention as I can not find any mention of an accident, fireball or anything !

LOL I do that but then I kick myself for not having just done it in the first place and the worst part is I never seem to learn my lesson !

Sorry must have been having a bad day I meant swallows and sand martins.

I have seen both swifts and sand martins with second broods in several locations in Suffolk. Also lots of geese

Thats more or less the conclusion I have been coming to but from a far more reputable source. If you read the "few examples of prior events" there is no evidence of domestic appliance failure or cars which some doomsday reports have claimed. The research I found from the aurora storm effect point of view reads like doomsday but if you look up how to protect electrical equipment it tends to be unplug and/or put it in a cardboard box and cover with aluminum foil. I can only assume that the aurora storm reports are accounting for the effects of all the people who have not unplugged their electrical items as the biggest threat seems to come from the power surge. I would assume that if it was not the case the government would be informing us how we can protect ourselves because there is no point in telling people at the last minuet.

I knew I should have put my beans in earlier. Ive been a bit surprised about the effects, I expected the grouse to have a good year as the cold would probably kill the parasites that have been causing them problems but it has also been a good year for several insects ladybirds, swallowtails butterflies and I have never seem as many humming-bird hawk-moths as this year before which I would not have expected. Well I thought I would rent a lorry and put all my electrical appliances in it I just wanted to protect my hard drives as I have lost all my photographs before when I had just started photography and hadnt backed them up, heartbreaking ! I have read that you can use a car as a faradays cage to protect from flares but then I have read on the doomsday type warnings that the electrics in cars will probably be effected !?

Thanks jonboy great website http://www.landscheidt.info/ They think it will be another cold winter I see I was having a search yesterday and found that a faradays cage will prevent damage from aurora, as I already have one when would you need to use it ? I take it when the aurora is expected to be seen and not when the flare has first appeared on the sun !?

Thank you Kar999 very interesting ! I thought the photograph was manipulated until I read down to the caption, never seen one like that before, amazing. "The strongest geomagnetic storm on record is the Carrington Event of August-September 1859"" Lights spread as far south as Cuba and Hawaii; auroras over the Rocky Mountains were so bright, the glow woke campers who began preparing breakfast because they thought it was morning." All the doomsday films they have been making on viruses and climate change not long before the aurora version comes out, its just hard to believe that something so magical and beautiful can bring our world to chaos. Hope you still have your film camera at least you can take some photographs of it !

I heard that x class flares could destroy electrical equipment etc. How can you protect them ? Does storing them in a fireproof safe do anything to offer protection against flares ?

Maximum Minimum maximum minimum maximum minimum http://nwstatic.co.uk/forum/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/wallbash.gif

humming-bird hawk-moths by the sounds of it.

[quote name= Something I do if I think there's activity, and I'm not sure if the glow ia aurora, is take a photo of the northern sky with a digital camera capable of a long exposure (5-15 secs, enough to bring out the stars). Most aurora is a very particular colour of green - if you see that green in the photo, then it's definitely aurora - yellow-orange is probably streetlight glow, blue probably twilight, whitish probably cloud. Your eyes don't see colours well in the dark, so this is a way of removing a little doubt if you're standing around in the cold! sss

Very interesting website thanks !