Aurora Hunting Part 6 – Tools
This is Part 6 of my aurora-hunting info-dump, and this post is designed to introduce you to some useful apps and web tools that can help you catch catch an aurora display.
There are loads of apps and websites out there that can help you optimise your aurora hunting decisions. Here I will introduce you to the ones I tend to use.
Glendale App
First up is the Glendale App, which is widely considered the best aurora hunting tool. This is a web-based app which you can either view in a browser, or install on your phone. Go to https://aurora-alerts.uk/ and it will give you an installation link. I’ve not managed to find it on the android app store. This is a great app that is full of information. If you install it on your phone it will notify you when space weather is doing something interesting. I get alerts when there is a solar flare, when the space weather is starting to get stormy (“substorm onset” – aurora tends to not happen in Scotland at this point, but it can sometimes be a kind of “warm-up” phase for a bigger storm), and for yellow, orange, red, and major (purple) alerts. For northern Aberdeenshire, I normally tend to start paying attention at an orange alert, but I know I have missed some good shows this way, as sometimes the alert doesn’t activate until 10 minutes after the show has started.
When you open the app, the top section tells you where aurora might be visible, depending on the geomagnetic conditions, and light from the sun and moon. It might also make short term predictions of when to expect the next burst of activity. Sometimes these are bang on, other times they are off by 10-30 minutes, but they can be an invaluable heads-up if it takes you 20 minutes to get to your aurora viewing spot. The last time I used this, the burst of activity was about 15 minutes late, but was far more intense than I was expecting and turned out to be the best show I have seen from Scotland.
There is a map of live reports that shows you where aurora has been spotted (at least on camera), where it is cloudy, and where it is clear but there is no aurora. If your aurora viewing spot is close-by, this can be a great tool for deciding when to head out the door.
Below are a series of real-time data feeds that tell you about the geomagnetic conditions. I won’t go into detail her as the app’s info buttons give good concise explanations about what the readings mean. I’ve used these readings to decide whether to hang around a bit longer, or go home, when I have been out viewing the aurora and it has gone quiet.
Down near the bottom is a long range forecast, that gives predictions of activity up to 4 weeks in advance, based on coronal holes.
Since I started using this app, I tend to not pay too much attention to the other tools, but here are th ones I still refer to occasionally or used to use the most.
Space Weather Live’s auroral oval
The auroral oval webpage is a prediction of how big and intense the aurora currently is, based on real-time solar wind data measured by satellites. If you are wondering whether to head out the door or not, this can help your decision making, although I find the Glendale live reports more useful. In short, if the auroral oval is red or yellow close to your location, go hunting. If the predicted oval is small, dark green, and concentrated far to the north, then stay at home in the warm!
University of Alaska Fairbanks’ aurora forecast
This aurora forecast page is nice and simple. There are a series of maps, including NW Europe, that show the maximum predicted aurora activity for yesterday, today, and tomorrow. It shows where to expect aurora overhead, and how far south you might be able t see it on the horizon. A box on the right shows today’s forecast split into 3-hourly intervals. If you scroll down, you get a long range forecast. If you compare this to the Glendale long range forecast, you will notice that they don’t always agree. I haven’t tested this idea yet, but I’m guessing that the more forecasts agree, the more accurate they are likely to be.
This website also uses Kp numbers, which is a system for measuring the strength of the aurora. The bigger the number the more likely there will be aurora. Kp5 is the threshold for a geomagnetic storm, so pay particular attention to predictions of Kp5 and higher.
Other forecasts
Auroraforecast.com has a different grading system, but provides a 3-day forecast that might be worth comparing with other forecasts.
Space Weather Live has a 3-day forecast split into 3-hour time slots. It also has a long term forecast that plots the moon phase as well.
Don’t forget
Wrap up warm – chances are you will be stood still, watching for quite a while. Despite very thick socks, I often have numb feet by the end of a night. Also think about the best gloves – mittens are great unless you are wanting to use your camera a lot. You don’t want to get numb fingers because you can’t operate your camera whilst wearing your gloves.
Camera tripod.
Depending on your viewing spot, you will probably need a decent torch. Remember a back-up and / or spare batteries. Don’t rely on your phone torch if you are also using your phone as a camera because you might run out of battery by the end of the night.
Make sure your camera batteries are fully charged well in advance – you don’t want your camera battery dying 10 minutes into a fantastic display (or maybe you do, so you can focus on watching it rather than photographing it?).
Patience.
I hope this series of blogs is helpful. If you have your own hints and tips to help see the aurora, please share them in the comments of any of these blog posts.
Happy hunting!
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