09/20/2023
γ First Chase β’ 2023-09-18 β’ 23:17 γ
I've been watching NOAA and various aurora groups throughout the day to see how everyone is interpreting the data as the CME from Saturday arrives. I haven't hit the road yet.
My phone starts buzzing around 9pm. Dad is sending me pictures of what he is currently seeing a couple hours north of me in cottage country. It's here! And it is bright.
In the back of my mind concern bubbles. I've spent too long thinking about if and where I should go, instead of actually going. I bolt out the door, jump in my car, and aim for dark sky about an hour north.
It's 10pm and I've reached my chosen spot. I shut the car lights off, give my eyes some time to adjust, keep my gaze north. I don't see anything. I take a couple test shots, dial in my settings and focus. Okay, it's there, just super faint, even for my camera.
An hour passes. I sit in my car to keep the wind from setting a chill in my bones, firing off shots now and again. I wonder if I'm just that bit too far south to be able to see anyth...
A bright spot flares to life in my peripheral. Surely it's just clouds, or someone pointing a flashlight up into the night sky. It took a minute for me to understand what I was seeing.
I've never seen clouds like that... Clouds do not MOVE like that.
I set my camera on a multi-shot self-timer and let it begin firing off shots.
With my bare eyes I see what looks like dancing clouds, ever so faintly bouncing around on the horizon, and shooting upward. They become more noticeable for very short bursts... 10 seconds here, 30 seconds there. I don't want to blink.
This was one of the brightest points of my night, both literally and figuratively. The first picture is what my camera captured, green and pink/purple glow setting my viewfinder ablaze and my adrenaline sky-rocketing. The second picture is more akin to what I actually saw.
What did I learn from my first true chase? At some point, you just gotta say "to heck with the data" and just go. Take the chance. Go with the flow - which is very much not my thing... I'm a planner! But for this view? I will always give in to spontaneity for this.
Here's to more chasing!
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