Northern Lights *Alert* (Threads Merged)

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Just seen on the weather forecast here in the South East of England that tonight between cloud cover, it may just be possible to see the Aurora Borealis - any photography tips for a newbie, other than to just enjoy it, if its visible?

Many thanks and if anyone grabs a pic or two, please post it here!
 
Sounds good for a shot, not much advice but a tripod will a must and try not to raise you ISO to much a slow shutter on a tripod will be fine.

Good luck
 
There has been a massive coronal mass ejection which promises some interesting aurorae. However, they rarely propagate as far south as SE England, and if they do, they'll be very faint. Your best chance of seeing them is to find a dark location away from light pollution and allow your eyes to become properly dark adapted. Look for moving greenish bands or sheets of glowing light in the northern sky.

People in Scotland (especially the north :D ) might be in for a treat if we get clear skies.
 
arclight said:
It is reporting "No major activity detected".
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That'll be *current* activity. They use magnetometers to detect disturbances if memory serves.

There has been a major CME, and it's heading for Earth. There will be aurorae ;)
 
Apparently there's a 35% chance we'll see aurora over the North of Britain tonight or tomorrow. Assuming the cloud goes away long enough anyway. On the plus side, even if we don't see this one the sun is going into an active phase so there'll be plenty more soon!
 
arclight said:
It is reporting "No major activity detected".
Click to expand...

Islander said:
That'll be *current* activity. They use magnetometers to detect disturbances if memory serves.

There has been a major CME, and it's heading for Earth. There will be aurorae ;)
Click to expand...

That's right. As soon as that needle starts to go crazy it's time to get out there in the dark sky.:thumbs:
 
I'm assuming this will be visible in Northern Ireland?

Anyone any idea about the best time to have a look?
 
johnnypanic said:
I'm assuming this will be visible in Northern Ireland?

Anyone any idea about the best time to have a look?
Click to expand...

Don't assume anything.:) I've only ever seen it once in Glasgow. It can happen anytime but you'll only see it in the hours of darkness and with clear skys or light broken cloud. Sometimes it's red in colour and not green.
 
Just checked the bbc northern ireland news website. One of their reporters took a picture on the Glenshane Pass, yesterday morning, so might be lucky.
 
I'm going for it in Surrey, cloud depending.
 
If it's clear then I'm gonna head up onto the Dundonald Hill behind Troon. I very much doubt it'll be clear!

Any tips on what settings to use? I'll be using a tripod and wired remote.
 
Trixster said:
If it's clear then I'm gonna head up onto the Dundonald Hill behind Troon. I very much doubt it'll be clear!

Any tips on what settings to use? I'll be using a tripod and wired remote.
Click to expand...

ISO200, f2.8 if you can, 2", manual focus to just before infinity.

You need the light, but the stars move quickly so I would say 2" is the max.
 
2 inches? (;))

I always thought that 25 seconds was pretty much the most you could get away with for a single exposure in order to minimize star trailing?
 
Depends how sharp you like your stars ;)
 
Hmm. I'd be inclined to bump ISO up a bit to 800 and drop the exposure time a jot. I know it's all about gaterhing as much light as possible (hence wide aperture and long exposure) but I think slightly smeary stars might ruin the shot a bit. This is of course assuming it a) happens and b) is cloudless! :)
 
Photo Plod said:
I don't know - is it even possible to see the Northern Lights that far south at all? :shrug:
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There's a reason they're called Northern Lights ;) :lol:

Thanks for the heads up on this event. I won't hold my breath in Essex, but you never know... :)
 
Will keep an eye on the sky tonight I think. Though I suspect between cloud cover, Heathrow and the M25 I stand next to no chance.

Will probably set up at up early and I would for a night sky shot (18mm, ISO 800, f/3.5, 25-30s) though I am tempted to bump the ISO and drop the shutter.
 
^ Do you shoot in RAW?

If so, just take the temperature out of the image, makes it nice and blue and more real.
 
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Hello all no photos today for crit just some information i picked up on the BBC which was posted today 17/02/2011 someone may catch it?

Scientists around the world will be watching closely as three eruptions from the Sun reach the Earth over Thursday and Friday.

These "coronal mass ejections" will slam into the Earth's magnetic shield.

The waves of charged solar particles are the result of three solar flares directed at Earth in recent days, including the most powerful since 2006.

The biggest flares can disrupt technology, including power grids, communications systems and satellites.

The northern lights (Aurora Borealis) may also be visible further south than is normally the case - including from northern parts of the UK.

"Our current view is that the effect of the solar flare is likely to reach Earth later today (Thursday GMT), possibly tomorrow morning," said Alan Thomson, head of geomagnetism at the British Geological Survey (BGS).

He told BBC News: "In the scientific community, there's a feeling that it's not as intense as we first thought it might be. But it's possible still that it could be a large enough event for us to see the northern lights in the UK."

However, weather forecasts suggested cloudy conditions could mar views of any aurorae.
 
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I just received the following from Aurorawatch:-

As you may have seen in the news, recent solar activity means that in
the next few days we have the best chance of seeing the aurora for
several years. If activity is detected we'll send another email.

You can also follow us on twitter: @aurorawatchuk.

If you do see any aurora please add your photos to the AuroraWatch UK
group on flickr:
http://www.flickr.com/groups/aurorawatch/
You can also add past sightings - we'll use the best contributions on
our webpage:
http://aurorawatch.lancs.ac.uk
 
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