Scenes from Antarctica

[Jma]

http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2008/11/scenes_from_antarctica.html

The aurora australis over the Dark Sector at Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station on June 3, 2008. The Dark Sector is so-named due to the absence of light and radio wave interfence. The bright spot above the ground shield in the foreground is Jupiter. The white streaks of light going up are the Milky Way. (Keith Vanderlinde/National Science Foundation) #

http://cache.boston.com/universal/site_graphics/blogs/bigpicture/antarctica_11_10/a07.jpg

[Antaletriangle]

Yeah absolutely grandiose shot-i'd love to capture the boreal or australe light at some point.Thanks for the shot.
http://www.projectavalon.net/forum/picture.php?albumid=17&pictureid=4764

[Dantheman62]

Awesome picture and growing up in northern Minnesota I've seen some very awesome aurora borealis, just like giant curtains floating in the sky!

[Operator]

Hi,

Thanks very nice picture indeed !

Question: doesn't the aurora effect only show at solar max in the cycle ?
We are supposed to be just passed solar minimum activity ... any one in the know on this ?

Cheers

[Dantheman62]

Hey Operator, all I know is it happened every year while I was growing up, I want to say late fall, early winter, not sure, some years were better than others, but it did happen every year. Now of course being a young kid in the late 60's and 70's I wasn't aware of solar cycles.And speaking of solar cycles the ESA has a picture of the sun actually updated daily, pretty neat!

[BeaTnik-BandiT]

Absolutely Wonderful.

During periods of solar minimum, these can still be observed, but closer to the poles, at higher laltitudes.


Here is a site where professional/amateur photographers are gathering pictures of these celestial phenomenons.

http://www.spacew.com/gallery/

salute.

[ISIS]

Thank you

These pictures are absolutely breathtaking,

Such stillness

Nature at its best

So much beauty

Thank you again for sharing these beauties