Up in Lights

PHOTOS CAPTURE AURORA BOREALIS FROM AROUND THE WORLD

The beautiful dancing waves of light in our heavens, known as the northern lights, or the aurora borealis, have captivated people for millennia and are often regarded as the Holy Grail of skywatching.

This month (December 2023), the travel and photography blog 'Capture the Atlas' which was formed to share unique moments in nature and help others capture them, have just published the 6th edition of their annual Northern Lights compilation. Featuring the 25 best Aurora Borealis photography from around the world, this annual portfolio is also aimed at inspiring and sharing the beauty of this natural phenomenon with others.

Always published in December, to coincide with the Northern Lights season (which ranges from September - April in the Northern Hemisphere and from March- September in the Southern Hemisphere), this year's list includes images that were taken from countries including UK, the United States, Canada, Germany, Italy, Finland, Norway, Iceland, Russia, Australia, and New Zealand. The images illustrate a huge range of colours, shapes and forms, with varying intensity depending upon the interaction of solar wind with the Earth's magnetosphere.

Dan Zafra, editor of 'Capture the Atlas', who curates these photos throughout the year (as well as helping others plan their trips and improve their photography), said "As we get closer to a solar maximum (the period of greatest solar activity during the Sun's 11-year solar cycle), we are seeing Northern Lights displays at lower latitudes and Aurora images in unique places where they haven't been photographed before. In this edition, we have examples like the Aurora images in Wales, Germany, Italy's Dolomites, mainland Australia, and Death Valley National Park."

Dan, who leads photo tours to some of the most photogenic places on earth and shoots his own photographs of breathtaking landscapes as well as the Milky Way and the Northern Lights himself, looks not only for images taken by some of the most renowned photographers, but also for new talent and locations where Aurora images are normally rare.

If you'd like to see more of this years stunning images and/or take part in the future, then you can visit their website HERE.

Photo credits: top left 'The Platform' - Virgil Reglioni, top right 'Northern Lights in Nova Scotia' - Kristine Rose

Menu - snapshot of 'Kirkjufell Explosion' - Marc Marco Ripoll