A Way From Town

The colorful aurora dancing lights above Alaska. As described by the photographer “I knew there were auroras in the sky that night, but just over the city of Fairbanks, Alaska, there was a thin layer of cloud that not only blocked the aurora view, but also reflected the city light back to those below. It made it impossible to see any night sky from the city, so I knew I needed to be away from town if I wanted to view the night. I drove west about 10 miles and emerged from under the cloud layer that night. It was nice to discover there were auroras in the sky, auroras I could now see from the countryside. I could look back towards the city and see the oval of human light making its mark on the clouds, and yet now I could see the auroras as well. It is somewhat ironic that all the lights I could now see, aurora and city lights, both had their origins from the sun. One from the solar wind now racing past the planet, and the other from fossil fuels solar formed probably millions of years ago. All the light I could see in the night was being driven by the same nearby star we call our sun”.