Did you miss out on seeing the northern lights from Lake Tahoe? Here are chances for a repeat
Submitted by paula on Sat, 05/11/2024 - 12:16pm
SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Did you see it? The northern lights, or the aurora borealis, put on an amazing show around the world Friday night. The dancing ribbons of light have captivated people for centuries, but those lights rarely make it to Lake Tahoe and the rest of northern California and Nevada. The bucket list moment was one many didn't expect to get from their home.
Hundreds of people around the south shore of Lake Tahoe hurried to the shoreline or wherever a clear view of the sky could be seen. Around 10:30 p.m. - 11 p.m., photos taken of the display were posted to social media, and those who missed out are wondering if Saturday night will be much of the same.
At this time we are unsure if tonight will be as intense, and as of 12:30 p.m. Saturday it looks like 5 p.m. will be the most intense energy - but South Lake Tahoe will be sunny and bright. Clear skies are forecast by the National Weather Service, so that is a good first step! It is all timing for another fabulous northern light show.
The sun has to face the right spot on Earth and the moon phase has to be right (a full moon is worse due to 'light pollution'). Europe had the most amazing display Friday as they had the main force of energy.
The space weather predictors at the NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center carry an Aurora Dashboard for the public to follow the energy levels expected for different areas. Their website provides a prediction of Aurora's visibility for both tonight and Sunday, an animated chart for what it's been up to for the last 24 hours, and estimates what the next 30 minutes will be like (so be ready to go!).
The aurora’s colorful green, red, and purple light shifts gently and often changes shape like softly blowing curtains.
See more here: https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/communities/aurora-dashboard-experimental
Tips on viewing the Aurora https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/content/tips-viewing-aurora. An iPhone or other camera with a night setting or lens is the way to see the intense colors. The naked eye will see the energy activity without strong colors.
In the two photos above from Josh Fricke taken at El Dorado Beach in South Lake Tahoe between 11 p.m. and midnight, he used a Canon 7D, Sigma 8-16 lens, 25-30 second exposures, f7.1- f9.0. They were uploaded straight from the camera with no post-processing.
In the photos from Cove East and Venice Drive in South Lake Tahoe from Abby Abel, she used an iPhone with a night setting on her phone's camera.