![]() ![]() ![]() The summit of kunanyi / Mount Wellington is also a favourite spot, though the glow of Hobart’s lights can obscure the natural lights and you’ll need to brave the chill at 1270m above sea level. Perennial favourite spots include Goat Bluff on South Arm Peninsula, about 35km south-east of Hobart Carlton Beach, 40km east of Hobart and Tinderbox, 20km south of Hobart. There’s a handy online map of places where auroras have been spotted across Tasmania. But most of the prime perches are in Tasmania’s south, closer to the South Pole. The Aurora Australis is sometimes seen right across the island in open areas with unobstructed views to the south. In the dark of night, when word has spread of a possible aurora, dark and remote places around Tasmania begin to fill with people and cameras. The Bureau of Meteorology’s Space Weather Services division posts current aurora conditions – you can subscribe for alerts – and there are apps such as My Aurora Forecast and SpaceWeatherLive offering information on the likelihood of auroras. The Aurora Australis Tasmania Facebook group has an active community of more than 100,000 people, while the Aurora Australis Tasmania Alert NOW page delivers on-the-spot reports of aurora sightings. Tinderbox tas temperature series#We never truly know.”Īurora chasers rely on a series of resources in the quest to capture Southern Lights moments. "We only know about three days in advance if an aurora might happen," says Margaret Sonnemann, creator of the Aurora Australis Tasmania Facebook group and author of the Aurora Chaser's Handbook. There are long-range forecasts of auroras, but dedicated chasers often hang in suspense until just a few days before its stage call. Space weather maps and predictions are helpful, but ultimately the sun calls the show. No one knows precisely when an aurora might occur. Everyone’s just celebrating nature and the beauty of the world, and that’s a special thing.” “It’s amazing when you’re out there with a bunch of other people, and the aurora fires up and there’s almost cheers. “I find it such a beautiful phenomenon,” says Tscharke. That said, Tasmania experienced one of its most luminous auroras in November 2020, when a colourful spectacle was visible across the island, even in well-lit inner Hobart suburbs. ![]() ![]() "In the vast majority of the smaller auroras, it’s like a faint white cloud,” says Hobart photographer Luke Tscharke, “but you can see it very faintly moving about.” In the south, we do things more subtly, with a shyer style of aurora. In the Northern Hemisphere, where inhabited lands sit closer to the pole, the Aurora Borealis can be as showy as a peacock, producing vivid displays of green, orange, purple and yellow light. When this solar wind is drawn towards the North and South poles, it brings with it particles that interact with gases in the Earth’s atmosphere, sparking these beautiful displays of light in high-latitude regions. When you do, it's a dance you’ll never forget.Īuroras occur when charged particles burst from the sun, creating a solar wind. We’ve talked to the experts and prepared a guide so you’ll have the best chance to witness an aurora. There’s a thrill in this hunt that’s turned thousands of Tasmanians into aurora chasers, seeking the finest vantage points on the best nights to witness this magical space shimmy. This is a celestial event that can play hard to get – images of green beams and purple glows are not the norm, and sometimes they’re barely visible to the naked eye.īut if you’ve come to photograph the Aurora Australis, there’s an alchemy that takes place behind the shutter, transforming the ghostly lights into a burst of colour. Tasmania is arguably the best place in the world to witness the southern version of this elusive and ethereal light show. This phenomenon is a more reserved version of the famed Northern Lights seen across Arctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere. It’s the Southern Hemisphere’s finest light show – the dancing colours of the Southern Lights, aka the Aurora Australis. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |