Where can you experience the northern lights?
The northern lights, or aurora borealis, are phenomenons you can observe in the northern hemisphere, above 55 magnetic degrees north. The northern lights belt stretches from the Lofoten islands in the south to North Cape in the north.
The Bardufoss Region is located in the heart of the northern lights belt, and is regarded one of the best places in the world to observe the northern lights. The region is easily accessed from Oslo Airport Gardermoen or with bus from Tromsø and Narvik.
When can you experience the northern lights?
The northern lights can appear on any dark night in the Bardufoss Region. September and March are regarded high seasons, however, the northern lights can be observed throughout the whole winter season (September to March). Observing the northern lights depends heavily upon the weather. Only if the skies are clear can you potentially observe the northern lights. Even if the polar nights causes dark skies most of the day in the region, the northern lights are most likely to be seen after 6PM. The northern lights activity is highest between 6PM and 1AM.
Please remember to take light pollution into consideration when planning your northern lights tour: northern lights are best observed with little or no light pollution. We kindly ask you to be patient when aiming to observe the northern lights. Setting aside a few days for maximizing you chances of observing this phenomenon is highly recommended.
What is it, and what does it look like?
The northern lights, also known as polar lights and aurora borealis, are natural phenomenas found in the northern hemisphere. The phenomenas appear when charged particles, slinged from the sun’s surface, hit the Earth’s magnetic field with great solar storms. The magnetic field lead the particles around the north and south poles in a circle, and as the charged particles hit the Earth’s atmosphere the particles release their energy which creates a magnificent light show observable to us.
The northern lights come in a great variety of shapes and colors, and it moves and changes color and shapes constantly. It can be seen as fluttering curtains, moving bands or as rolling smoke. The colors are mostly light to darker green, however, when the northern lights are very active, a narrow stripe of pink can be visible. Some times the northern lights “explode” in a crown and beams in all directions, with a great show in green, purple, white and pink.
