Unless you live in a cave or never go out at night, you’ve probably heard about, seen, or even photographed the incredible northern light displays that have occurred this fall.
The northern lights, or Aurora Borealis, have even been seen as far south as Texas and Arizona, delighting a broad audience of first-time viewers. So what’s going on here? Why is the Aurora so frequently dancing across our night skies?
Increased Geomagnetic Storm Activity
The numerous and incredible northern lights displays seen so far this fall can be attributed to heightened solar activity as the sun approaches the peak of its 11-year cycle, known as Solar Cycle 25. During this cycle, the sun experiences increased sunspots and geomagnetic storms, leading to more frequent and intense auroras. The activity is projected to peak between late 2024 and early 2026, meaning northern lights sightings will likely remain strong for the time being.
The Aurora Borealis occurs when charged particles from the sun collide with Earth’s magnetosphere, causing electrons in the atmosphere to release energy in the form of light. Recent geomagnetic storms have been particularly strong, pushing auroras far south of their usual latitude. According to NASA, this heightened solar activity exceeded initial expectations, increasing the likelihood of geomagnetic storms and awe-inspiring light displays throughout 2025 and 2026.
Professor David Knudsen of the University of Calgary explains the intense colours of recent displays are due to the chemistry of gases mixing with electrons in Earth’s upper atmosphere—the intense red and green streaks many Albertans saw are caused by oxygen. “All the oxygen in our atmosphere actually comes from life on Earth. So, in a way, the aurora is lighting up the breath of life on Earth,” said Knudsen.
For Albertans, this fall and winter and through to spring of 2026 promise many more opportunities to catch these breathtaking lights, so if you’ve missed out on recent displays, you’ll have ample opportunity to see the lights as they continue dancing across the sky. Below are a few tips on seeing and photographing this season’s celestial colourful flickerings.
When Will the Aurora Happen?
For the casual viewer, “When should I go out?” is the first question. After all, who wants to give up cozy time on the couch binging on your favourite streaming series only to shiver in the dark and not see any northern lights?
The easy answer to determining when to head out searching for aurora is to rely on experts.
Join a local “Aurora Chasers” Facebook group. These group’s keeners will always keep up to date with geomagnetic storm activity and post when the likelihood of aurora is high. Just be sure to have your Facebook notifications on so you’ll know when stuff starts happening. One of the most popular groups to join is Alberta Aurora Chasers, not only for the great information and expertise provided but also for seeing the stunning photography posted.
Banff’s Paul Zizka, one of North America’s premier aurora photographers, also recommends “you keep an eye on the [Aurora] Facebook groups that are based at a location east of you. Why? Because they will get darkness before you and can give you a heads-up if the sky lights up. That way, you know that as soon as it gets dark in your area, there might be a chance of capturing something, and so you can be ready for that.”
Zizka also recommends that you “locate any of your local north-facing webcams and keep a close eye on them… you can’t argue with direct visual observations from the field.” We highly recommend the Rocky Mountain Aurora Cam at Sunshine Village in Banff National Park for those looking for a webcam in the mountains.
Of course, you won’t see the northern lights if it is cloudy in your area. Even if the likelihood of aurora is high, the lights will be hidden if there is heavy cloud cover. So look for clear skies and high probabilities of lights before you head out.
Finally, when you head out, you’ll need to get out of town and all the city’s light pollution to a dark location with an unobstructed view of the northern sky. Of course, dress for the weather and be prepared to be thrilled.
Photographing the Aurora
In the film days, making images of the northern lights was complicated and required extensive technical knowledge and high-end camera gear. Today’s digital cameras and smartphones are excellent in their capabilities to capture Aurora photos, and it’s never been easier to make images or videos of the celestial nighttime displays. Even so, the following tips will help you make better images to share on your social media feed.
- Steady Tripod: Tripods are essential for long exposures in low light. Common exposure times for northern lights range between 8 and 30 seconds. No one can hold a camera steady for that long, so mount your camera on a tripod to prevent blurry images.
- Manual Focus: Low light and flickering lights can wreck your camera or phone’s autofocus system. Learn how to lock your focus to infinity.
- No Flash: Some cameras and phones automatically turn on the flash in low-light conditions. A flash burst will ruin your Aurora photos and waste battery power. Turn off your flash.
- Manual Exposure: Set your camera to manual exposure using the widest aperture setting (e.g. the smallest number; f1.4, f2.0, f2.8, etc.) and try using a shutter speed of 15 seconds to start. Adjust the shutter speed to darken or lighten the results. Newer smartphones have “Night” mode. Use it to adjust your exposure time (around 10-15 seconds) to capture the aurora’s dance.
- Turn off Image Stabilization: Many cameras have built-in lens or camera body image stabilization to prevent hand-held blur. Your camera should be on a tripod, so turn these features off because they will cause blur when the camera is solidly mounted on a tripod.
- Shoot in RAW Mode: All modern digital cameras and most smartphones have RAW image mode, which gathers the most digital data and requires the user to process the image. Shooting in RAW gives you the most flexibility to adjust the image’s exposure, colours, and contrast after the fact.
- Exposure Apps: If your default camera lacks manual controls, consider specialty apps that allow you to use your phone for night photography.
- Screen Brightness: Reduce the brightness of your LCD screen. A bright screen hinders your night vision and makes your photos look brighter than they actually are.
- Battery Backup: The cold and long exposures will deplete your battery quickly. Nobody wants to be the only Aurora shooter out there with a dead battery, so bring extra batteries or a portable power bank to ensure you have power when the Aurora goes crazy!
- Experiment: Play with exposure times, lenses, and framing. The best Aurora shots include more than just the sky. To add interest, include an interesting foreground, a silhouette, or a building.
- Double the Colour: Look for water or ice in the foreground to reflect all that Aurora-coloured goodness throughout your photo.
- Dress Warmly. Standing around in the cold and taking photos will sap you of heat. Overdress: You can always remove clothes, but you can add clothes if you don’t bring extra!
If you have a DSLR and want to delve even further into how to make professional-quality Aurora pictures possible, then we highly recommend Paul Zizka’s Guide to Viewing and Photographing Nothern Lights ebook.
The newly released Aurora Field Guide for Citizen Science is another fantastic, free, and valuable resource for understanding the Aurora.
And if you want even more Aurora goodness, Paul Zizka is hosting a FREE online live event on October 24, 2024, at 7 PM MT. Based on his research, he will reveal what he believes is the Aurora Capital of the World.
Will Alberta be number one?
