Solar and Aurora Activity Chat

[*Stormforce~beka*]

Just looked sod all here.

[Iceman2606]

More stunning shots from Ryan at Binsley fell. The colours!

[Southern Storm]

As expected there are some amazing images being posted from around the country.

I decided to ride back home around 11 but it looks like I should have stayed put  

it was getting very chilly though 

Oh well 

This is the best shot I managed, too much light pollution and bad timing. 

6 minutes ago, Iceman2606 said:

More stunning shots from Ryan at Binsley fell. The colours!

Absolutely incredible

such beautiful colours 

[Iceman2606]

No luck here in Northants tonight. Been stuck underneath this weakening band of showers slowly moving SSE. Hopefully further opportunities for tomorrow night.

[Iceman2606]

South Wales

[weatherobsuk]

Sat in the car overlooking Manchester and seeing nothing but clouds here for now, its supposed to be around 2am before any clear breaks begin but whether the Aurora holds up enough for it is in question.

[Arnie Pie]

Best pics I can get for now

still trying to work out if there's something behind the light pollution

[weatherobsuk]

Second time in a row seeing the Aurora, again I couldn't see anything by sight and the clouds parted just as the display was ending, but I managed to catch something that looks like light pillars (second pic) when looking closely. I still need to adjust my ISO settings and had to edit out the car aerial (oops) but for the 2hrs of waiting i'm calling it a win for the attempt.

 

[Weather-history]

The weather can be infuriating at times and I bet with clearer skies tonight, there will no aurora visible.

[RebsAbbo]

I did check from my garden last night a couple of times but too much cloud cover. I did also think I need to check this page before I go to the pub for a couple, otherwise I could have had a drive out to the coast where it’s often more likely to be seen. Ah, well, next time

[Dreckly]

Lovely one from Cornwall

 

[Polar Gael]

A belter of a visit from the Merry Dancers last night.

 

[Sprites]

Southern Spain 

https://spaceweathergallery2.com/indiv_upload.php?upload_id=195528

[weatherobsuk]

Tonight is looking much quieter than yesterday evening with a max KP of around 6, the forecasts are based on model data but i'll be happy to be corrected later-on if activity picks up to 'storm' levels once again. I'll be watching the usual Aurora charts and scanning through Twitter/FB for any reports.

 

Saying that, the BGS issued this statement a hour ago

A full-halo Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) that left the Sun on Friday 21st April 2023 arrived yesterday evening (23rd April) causing a significant disturbance in the Earth’s magnetic field.

Major STORM conditions observed last night are expected to persist throughout the next 24 hours.

Assuming clear, dark skies, there is a reasonable chance of seeing the aurora tonight. Those in Scotland, northern England and Northern Ireland have a better chance if the weather is favourable.

Edited April 24, 2023 by SNOW_JOKE

[Iceman2606]

Just incredible from Ireland!

[Sprites]

It's a month since the last severe magnetic storm March 23rd/24th. Maybe it's the same area of the sun rotating around to face earth again. May 23rd/24....

Edited April 24, 2023 by Sprites

[Weather-history]

21 minutes ago, Sprites said:

It's a month since the last severe magnetic storm March 23rd/24th. Maybe it's the same area of the sun rotating around to face earth again. May 23rd/24....

Problem is the lingering twilight is increasing, so come  late May, the window of opportunity is really narrow. 

[Southern Storm]

23 minutes ago, Sprites said:

It's a month since the last severe magnetic storm. Maybe it's the same area of the sun rotating around to face earth again. May 23rd/24....

Could be! 

What are people's thoughts as to why we are seeing an increase in Aurora sightings? especially further south. 

My instincts are telling me that this is the first decent active cycle for the past 20 years or so and is simply a case of better awareness of unfolding events through apps and social media, plus better cameras to capture any displays that do occur.

If we'd had better cameras and some way of knowing a Storm was likely to happen, I'm sure we would have many more historical photos of past events.

Or is there something else going on, maybe magnetic pole drift?

Also, can anyone point to any historical data as I'm interested in comparing recent activity against past active periods.

Its all very exciting nevertheless

 

Edited April 24, 2023 by Southern Storm

[Weather-history]

Just now, Southern Storm said:

 

What are people's thoughts as to why we are seeing an increase in Aurora sightings? especially further south. 

 

 

Easy

Solar activity is greater than it has been for nearly two decades. Greater the solar activity, the greater chance of seeing aurora.

Nothing unusual is going on, there have been even greater displays in the past. The early April 2000 display knocked last night's display out of the park. 

I have read many accounts of aurora been witnessed over the decades.

[Scuba steve]

I’m sure I read something somewhere about increased Aurora activity leading to more thunderstorms anyone’s ever heard of this?

[The Tall Weatherman]

17 minutes ago, Scuba steve said:

I’m sure I read something somewhere about increased Aurora activity leading to more thunderstorms anyone’s ever heard of this?

Found this discussion on Quora about it that was quite interesting but most agreed that Thunderstorms are in the troposphere and auroras are in the thermosphere and thus have no relation.

What would happen if a thunder storm and aurora borealis happened in the same place? Would it result in an extremely powerful lightning d...

WWW.QUORA.COM

---

Answer (1 of 2): A thunderstorm happens in the troposphere. The Aurora Borealis, a.k.a. Northern Light, happens in the thermosphere, way above the...

 

[Sprites]

1 hour ago, Scuba steve said:

I’m sure I read something somewhere about increased Aurora activity leading to more thunderstorms anyone’s ever heard of this?

University of Reading

WWW.READING.AC.UK

---

The University of Reading is a global university that enjoys a world-class reputation for teaching, research and enterprise.

https://www.snexplores.org/article/cosmic-rays-offer-clues-about-lightning

 

Edited April 24, 2023 by Sprites

[weatherobsuk]

[Arnie Pie]

To my surprise (LP), I managed to take a short time lapse the other morning
taken between 0.22 and 0.38 on the morning of Monday 24-4-2023

120 images taken every 4" @ f5 ISO 500 24mm

although not the capturing the beauty of other images, I'm just happy to have caught the greenage to my due N, which is a first for me

 

 

[Weather-history]

On 24/04/2023 at 19:06, Scuba steve said:

I’m sure I read something somewhere about increased Aurora activity leading to more thunderstorms anyone’s ever heard of this?

I have heard of the theory that increasing sunspots increases risk of thunderstorms