Aurora Borealis as seen in the skies near Gullfoss, Iceland. Photo: Andrew Green
In some Nordic countries the lights
were seen as sunlight being reflected
from the shields of the Valkyries as
they carried the dead to Valhalla.
In another the Aurora was referred
to as “Bifrost” the path between
heaven and earth.
In Alaska, the Inuit feared the
Aurora and carried sharp knives
which they could wave at the lights
dancing above them, some even
believed they heard noises from the
Aurora trying to communicate with
them and the response of that was
to whisper back.
Others saw it as a good sign too;
When good Aurora was seen
many people believed it was a sign
of a good harvest, in Scandinavia
when the fisherman saw the Aurora
the lights were seen as the reflection
off shoals of herring fish and meant
a bountiful catch would follow.
The Copper Eskimo’s of Northern
Canada believed the Aurora to be
spirits responsible for good weather
and bountiful hunting.
One thing is for sure, any culture
that has ever witnessed the Aurora
will have its own tales to tell and they
are many and very varied but always
interesting and inspiring.
Now though, we live in the 21st
century, we know more about the
Aurora then we have ever done
before, and with the advent of space
travel, we have in orbit, a ready
platform from which to observe the
lights.
The International Space Station
(ISS) is in prime location as it orbits
the earth especially over those Polar
regions we mentioned earlier. Here,
in orbit, the astronauts on board the
station have a perfect view of the
light show. Many spectacular Aurora
displays have been witnessed
from this high vantage point. More
recently on the ISS cameras and
video cameras have all been
pointed toward these displays and
the resulting images from space are
truly spectacular!
In summary, If you ever go to a
place where you have a chance
of witnessing this magical of natural
phenomena, I guarantee that you
will be stood in awe whist watching!
Please give it a go.
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