Northern Lights, Comets, and Full Moons…Oh My!!!

Bright lights, comet, and Moons in the Big City :-)

Posted on November 10, 2024 by Carolyn Donovan and Wan Chi Lau in Photography, RainyDayPhotography, RainyDayScience // 0 Comments

The Northern Lights and other such sights are often visible only in locations in the Far North (also known as The Arctic). Because viewing opportunities outside The Arctic are few, they are worth seeing—along with comets and total solar eclipses—anytime there is an opportunity to do so! So we did.

2024’s Summer and Fall was jam packed with out-of-the-ordinary astronomical events visible even to those of us who live in light-polluted cities. We have been excitedly availing ourselves of any and all opportunities to see them with our own eyes!

Aurora Borealis

Predictions of seeing the Aurora Borealis colors in Boston were all over the news because of reports of solar flare activities, coronal mass ejections (CMEs) and the resultant northern light display. Our problem was that because of the light pollution, all the conditions would have to be absolutely just right for us city dwellers to see anything.

Fortunately, one night—just one!—after sunset, ALL the conditions were “just right”! And. It. Was. Amazing.

What the…

The funny thing was that we weren’t actually looking for the lights; all we noticed was that the night sky looked odd (although this being Boston we probably thought the sky looked “wicked weird.”) The glow just kept getting brighter and brighter. Still, it wasn’t until we put the iPhone up to take a photo that the colors “popped out” on the screen.

“See? SEE? I TOLD you we weren’t alone in the universe! E.T. we have an extra space in the driveway for you!”

Clearly the camera sensor was alot more sensitive to the Aurora’s wavelengths than our eyes were…and the colors were Oh-My-Goddering gorgeous. We just stood there looking at it in complete awe (and one of us may have had tears in his-or-her eyes).

Standing in the driveway just looking up at the sky, seeing this…that’s all we could do (and it takes alot for one of us to fall completely silent…)

Comet A3

As if seeing the Aurora Borealis in the Boston wasn’t enough, in October, Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) or A3 for short, also graced the night sky! It was bright enough to be seen with the naked eye, which was a complete bonus. How bright? It was the brightest comet in 27 years, the brightest since Hale-Bopp in 1997! And considering it takes roughly 80,000 years to complete one orbit around the sun, it’s kinda cool that we saw this thing at all.

Nope, that’s not a smudge – that’s the comet!

Unlike the northern lights, a comet’s exact time and location of appearance is well-known in advance. The ONLY variable is the weather. IF the clouds stay away, we would be guaranteed a great viewing of it. So of course, all of us on the hill had our fingers crossed…

“Oh my gawd, wouldja look at that.”

Once again, the “Astronomy Gods” smiled on us in Boston. We were granted a cool but very clear night for the viewing. It was about an hour after sunset, with the glow still on the horizon, when some shouted “THERE…about 10 o’clock to the left of the tree!!!!” Sure enough! There it was…

…and it was AMAZING!!!

“Can’t even…oh wow…and I didn’t bring any tissues…”

Moons and bright planets

The Hunter’s Moon was the largest Supermoon of 2024. It is also known as the Travel Moon, the Dying Grass Moon, or the Sanguine or Blood Moon. It was on Thursday morning, Oct. 17, 2024, at 7:26 a.m. EDT.

Seeing a Full Moon during the day was both odd and kinda cool. We know that the light of the Moon is the reflected light of the Sun, but when there is a FULL moon in the sky during the day…one is inclined to ask, “How is this possible? Shouldn’t we only see half a moon?” Clearly that’s not true. As for how, we’ll leave that as an exercise for the RainyDayMagazine readers to work out 🙂

Good morning, sunshine! Oh wait, that’s the…nevermind.

In our efforts to see the northern lights, the comet, and the full moons, we also ended up with a lot of photos of sunrises, sunsets, planets, and almost full moons. We thought readers would enjoy seeing a sampling.

There are always good shots to take in Boston – probably where you are, too!

The equipment used for most of these images were from a Nikon D850 with various Nikkor lenses (24-70mm, 70-200mm, 200-500mm) and the always amazing iPhone 11 Pro Max.

Wow, just wow. Possibly wowza. No, definitely wowza.

Of course, regardless of the camera and lens used, the KEY piece of equipment for any night time photography is the tripod. Vanguard carbon fiber tripods have served us well over the years. They are light, strong, and well-designed.

It is nigh on absolutely impossible to get a sharp, clear photo of any celestial object without one. One can try, but the results would likely be utterly disappointing….so don’t.