{"id":27250,"date":"2022-01-15T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-01-15T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.omio.co.uk\/window-seat\/uncategorized-en-gb\/the-best-northern-lights-destinations"},"modified":"2023-03-09T13:50:21","modified_gmt":"2023-03-09T13:50:21","slug":"the-best-northern-lights-destinations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.omio.co.uk\/window-seat\/en-gb\/culture-lifestyle-en-gb\/the-best-northern-lights-destinations\/","title":{"rendered":"The Best Northern Lights Destinations"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The night is cold, the breath tickles the nose and small clouds of vapour from your mouth. The snow crackles under your shoes as hot chocolate warms your hands. You look to the heavens and there it begins. A fragile green veil appears, almost like a shadow. It glows stronger and winds around itself. You hold your breath in awe and remain silent so as to not disturb the light dance in the night sky. It lasts only a few minutes but will be remembered for many years to come. The aurora borealis is truly a wonder of nature. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The first known record of the glowing phenomenon comes from the Babylonians who talked about the northern lights more than 2,500 years ago. But the indigenous peoples of Scandinavia, Alaska, northern Canada and Siberia also have tales about light dances in the sky, which were interpreted as messages from the gods, evil omens or a bridge to the afterlife.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Still, with all our advances in technology, nobody truly knows what causes the northern lights. In a very simplified way, solar winds with charged particles hit our atmosphere. The electrical energy reacts with the magnetic field and atoms at an altitude of about 62 miles and appears as a fluorescent veil\u2014how strong depends on the solar activity. The resulting auroras are visible mainly near the poles. <\/p>\n\n\n\n


At the North Pole they are called northern lights or aurora borealis and at the South Pole, southern lights or aurora australis. Green auroras are the most common, but red, pink, purple and blue can also be spotted if you\u2019re lucky. The best time to see the northern lights is from late October to early April. Naturally, it should be as dark as possible with a cloudless sky. Because they are difficult to predict, a northern lights forecast is hard to get. But tools for Northern Lights hunting, which uses the KP index (scale of geomagnetic activity) like specialised apps and the University of Alaska’s Geophysical Institute website, are very useful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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With warm clothes, a good camera and a nice background you are well equipped for the perfect shot. Credit: Shutterstock<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

To capture the natural spectacle of the dancing northern lights in a picture, you need a good camera and a stable tripod. Familiarise yourself with the manual settings of your camera to get a sharp photo\u2014the automatic mode won\u2019t suffice. Go for an SLR or system camera with a light-sensitive wide-angle lens. This works best for landscape pictures. You will have to experiment a bit with the exposure time to get enough light for an expressive photo and no distortions from the moving auroras. This is also where the tripod comes in to ensure enough stability. A remote shutter release helps to keep the image from blurring when you trigger the shutter. And then you just have to wait until the first northern lights appear in the night sky\u2014preferably wrapped up thickly with a tasty hot drink in your hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our tip: Look for a suitable place with a dramatic background such as mountains, a lonely hut or a coastline. This way, you\u2019ll end up with a beautifully composed image and not just a green stripe against a dark background.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ready for a trip? Then pack your cosiest winter clothes, here\u2019s where to see the wonders this winter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Troms\u00f8, Norway<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Located 217 miles north of the Arctic Circle, Troms\u00f8<\/a> is a northern lights hotspot in Norway. Its accessibility and moderate temperatures thanks to the Gulf Stream are both good arguments in favour of hunting for northern lights here. <\/p>\n\n\n

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