Aurora watch

Rolfe

Rolfe

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Well, here's the thing. I had decided to do a <10% to 100% charge on Caliban overnight. Takes a long time on a granny lead, and I wanted everything well calibrated before setting off on my road trip in ten days. I got home on 6%, nice, let the car sit at that while I had lunch, then started the charge at 3 o'clock, expecting not to use it till about tea-time tomorrow.

Then I discovered that the best chance for aurora-watching in 20 years might be tonight. Despite the fact that we're already in the "white nights" - perpetual twilight without any real dark. I have my spot all picked out. It means, though, that I'll have to interrupt the long charge. We never really established whether doing this made any difference, so I don't know whether I need to make plans to do it all again next week or not.

At least I have enough energy in the battery - it should be at about 40% by half past midnight, when I should go out. Which is an improvement on last time, the time I established where to go to look, but missed the actual aurora - because my car was out of petrol! The nearest petrol station to where I live is nine miles away. I had got home very low and was planning to fill up next time I went out. I only had enough to get about 20 miles or so, safely. I didn't discover about the aurora till pretty late on. I went out, but realised I had to get petrol first because I had to drive around looking for a good viewing spot. The Tesco petrol station nine miles away wouldn't take my debit card. Beginning to panic now. Went on to Asda, which is about five miles further on, and that liked the colour of my plastic so I got the petrol. By this time the aurora was beginning to fade and I still hadn't found a good spot. Spylaw turned out to be great for the Milky Way but no clear view to the north. Eventually I found a good place, but there was barely a green glow.

So don't tell me how brilliant ICE cars are to fill up, five minutes and you're on your way. An EV is never going to be sitting on its owner's drive at midnight, empty.
 
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It made it all the way down here, picture straight from iPhone
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You are MUCH better at holding the phone steady than I am.

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Amazing though. Not just in the north (in fact not much in the north at all), they filled the whole sky, right overhead, like the vaulting in a cathedral. Then moved west over the Pentlands, with a new-ish moon in the photo as well.

I wish I'd gone out a bit sooner, as it was darker than I thought it would be. The minute I stepped out of my front door I saw green streaks high overhead, and as I drove up on to the high moor road I passed quite a few people with the same idea, holding phones. I came home because I thought it had faded a bit but the forecast is still good so I might go out again. With some strong coffee! It was well worth ditching Caliban's long charge for this. Also great to be in an EV where you can sit in the car with the heater on.

I was very glad I had bought some magnetic car window blinds with the thought of camping. A pair fitted over the DRLs and cut out the light pollution from these. The other pair went over the screens. I was able to sit in complete darkness with the heating and the stereo on. When I did this before in my Golf it was easier to shut everything down for total darkness, but then it got cold pretty quickly and no music of course.
 
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Rolfe said:
You are MUCH better at holding the phone steady than I am.
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I think that's due to some clever stuff in the iPhone night mode. We only had to step into the garden to see this, although I wish we'd gone out to the coast.

I really like the 'ghostly green mist' you've caught in your photo.

tsedge said:
Beautiful and terrifying at the same time. I wonder how long it will be before a solar storm takes out a major grid?
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We don't reach solar max until next year so there's plenty of time yet.
 
And as far southwest as Cornwalls pointy end... ( A rare event??)
 

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I should have gone out earlier but I didn't realise it would be decently dark so early. I missed the beginning, but I think I caught the best of it. All over the sky, like a huge over-arching luminous green cathedral ceiling. And the new moon in the old moon's arms is in my picture if only it was in focus.

What's confusing me is that the show here seems to have started almost immediately, but was fading between midnight and 1am. At 11.30 it was fantastic. And yet the aurora watch shows huge solar activity all night. I went back up after 2am just to see, but there was essentially nothing. I don't know why it happens like that.

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Rolfe said:
I should have gone out earlier but I didn't realise it would be decently dark so early. I missed the beginning, but I think I caught the best of it. All over the sky, like a huge over-arching luminous green cathedral ceiling. And the new moon in the old moon's arms is in my picture if only it was in focus.

What's confusing me is that the show here seems to have started almost immediately, but was fading between midnight and 1am. At 11.30 it was fantastic. And yet the aurora watch shows huge solar activity all night. I went back up after 2am just to see, but there was essentially nothing. I don't know why it happens like that.

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Click to expand...
Same thing here - 2345 reading about 645, managed to get some half decent shots. 0315, reading 1395 - nothing.
I'm guessing the readings are hourly samples and if you check 45 mins later it could well have passed ?
 
Came back out tonight because there seems to be a chance, but it's cloudier. The moor road is HEAVING compared last night. The car I was following snuck into my pet space. Currently sitting in the entrance to a track, next to a Tesla. The two ICE who were here earlier have scarpered. Ah, Tesla going now too.

No harm in staying a bit longer. I brought ginger and biscuits. The Aurorawatch Web site isn't responding, probably overloaded.
 
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