Frequently Asked Questions

Here are some questions we are frequently asked, and the answers to them. If your question isn't answered below, please Contact Us.

Your Alerts

I've forgotten my password.
I need to change my email address.
I'm receiving too many alerts, why?
I've been receiving strange messages from you, what do they mean?
What do the aurora alerts look like?
How do I read the aurora alerts?
How do I Unsubscribe?
How do I change my aurora alerting settings?
My aurora alerts have the wrong time on.
I live near the artic or antartic, where we get 24 hour daylight, how do I switch alerting off for the summer?
I'm going on vacation how do I temporarily switch off my alerts?
I want to check the messages are getting through to my pager/mobile/email.
My email doesn't work from time to time.
Why do I receive alerts during the daytime?
I have an SMS phone, how do I get alerts to appear in the subject line?

General

o What does an aurora look like?

How do I see an aurora?
How do I photograph the aurora?
Can I hear the aurora?
What's a Kp Index?
Can I link to your website?
Can I publish your photos on my website?
I wish to use your photos in my book, company logo, background for my screen, can I do this?
Where do you take your pictures?
I live near the Calgary area, can I join you to view auroras?
Do you sell your photos?
I want to travel to see the aurora, where is the best place?
Are the Northern Lights and Aurora Borealis the same thing?
Where's the best place to live?
What is Pulsating Aurora?
Can I video the aurora?
I live in X, we can't see auroras here, correct?
My neighbours and friends say there is never an aurora at our location, is this true?
Do I need a telescope to see an aurora?
How often is the aurora seen?
Best time of year to view the aurora?
Can the Aurora be seen in the Southern Hemisphere?

I've forgotten my password.

You can have your password emailed to you, by asking for a Password Reminder

I need to change my email address.

You can change all your ADEC account settings (including your email address). Change Account Settings

I'm receiving too many alerts, why?

It is most likely that your alerting Kp index is set too low for your location. The nature of alerting is such that you might not receive an alert for months, then an auroral storm will hit, and you might get alerts for the next few days.

You also have 2 types of alerting frequency, Noisy or Quiet. If you're using Noisy, you may want to try the Quiet setting.

You can change all your ADEC account settings (including your Kp index). Change Account Settings

I've been receiving strange messages from you, what do they mean?

You have at sometime in the past signed up for the ADEC Auroral Alerting service. Until now, your alert hasn't been triggered, but there has now been a strong aurora which has triggered the alerting level you set.

The messages you are getting are telling you the strength of the aurora that is occuring.

What do the aurora alerts look like?

ADEC alerts come from the email address: adeclist at aurorachasers, and have the Subject "ADEC".

They consist of one line (deliberately short for mobile phones and pager displays).

Here is an example:

ADEC Downgrade: Kp:4.67 Time:4:20PM Sep 24 (UT-3) Confidence:100%

How do I read the aurora alerts?

ADEC Downgrade: Kp:4.67 Time:4:20PM Sep 24 (UT-3) Confidence:100%

Downgrade or Upgrade: An aurora has exceeded your threshold (upgrade), or has fallen below your threshold. If your Alert Frequency is set to Noisy, any additional 1.0 Kp rise or fall will trigger an upgrade or downgrade (provided you're above your threshold).

Kp: This is the current value of the predicted Kp index. Values are predicted every 15 mins.

Time: This is the localtime at which the Kp index should be reached. This should normally be 45mins to 90mins after the time the email was received (if it's not, please check your account settings for the correct TimeZone).

Confidence: This is the confidence factor in the prediction. If it's 100% confident, then the likelyhood of that Kp occuring is very high.

How do I Unsubscribe?

We have an Unsubscribe Web Page

How do I change my aurora alerting settings?

You can change all your ADEC account settings. Change Account Settings

My aurora alerts have the wrong time on.

The time inside the alert message should be normally 45mins to 90mins after the time the email was received (if it's not, please check your account settings for the correct TimeZone).

You can change all your ADEC account settings. Change Account Settings

I live near the artic or antartic, where we get 24 hour daylight, how do I switch alerting off for the summer?

You can set a vacation setting on your account, to stop your from getting alerts. Please remember to switch it back on again afterwards.

You can change all your ADEC account settings. Change Account Settings

I'm going on vacation how do I temporarily switch off my alerts?

You can set a vacation setting on your account, to stop your from getting alerts. Please remember to switch it back on again afterwards.

You can change all your ADEC account settings. Change Account Settings

I want to check the messages are getting through to my pager/mobile/email.

Option coming soon.

My email doesn't work from time to time.

If email to you bounces back to us, we do a couple of things. Firstly, we wait a few days to see if it fixes itself. If it doesn't, then if your Alert address and Info address are different, we will set your Alert address to your Info address. If we can't get a message through to you, we will delete your account eventually.

If you suffer from an email account that regularly has problems like this, we suggest to check your account settings from time to time, and recreate your account with us if you need to.

You can change/check all your ADEC account settings. Change Account Settings

Why do I receive alerts during the daytime?

Some people wish to know about an aurora during the day, so they can prepare for a nightime excursion. Also, some people are Amateur Radio enthusiasts and can use auroras for their work during the day.

If you wish to be only alerted during a certain time of the day, you can set a Start Time and End Time for alerting.

You can change all your ADEC account settings. Change Account Settings

I have an SMS phone, how do I get alerts to appear in the subject line?

Some people have an SMS phone and prefer the alert information to appear in the subject line rather than the message body. By default ADEC alerts appear in the message body.

To enable alerts to appear in the subject line, you can checkmark the SMS setting in your account settings.

Change Account Settings

What does an aurora look like?

Check out our Viewing Guide.

How do I see an aurora?

Check out our Viewing Guide.

How do I photograph the aurora?

Check out our Photography Guide.

Can I hear the aurora?

You maybe able too. Technically, it should be impossible to hear the aurora as it's many miles up on the edge of our atmosphere, and there isn't enough air for sound to travel through to ground level.

However, despite this, many people report hearing the aurora, and study is being done in this area. Some people say they hear tinkling sounds, humming sounds, or static noise type sounds. Currently theories for this effect, include:

The brain interpreting information from the visual cortex as sound.
The magnetic effects of the aurora (which are measurable at ground level) interacting with metal objects locally, kind of like a magnetic radio. (commonly power lines, transformers, etc).

What's a Kp Index?

A Kp index is a scale (0 to 9) which is a 3 hourly range in magnetic activity on our planet. It is calculated from 13 geomagnetic observatories between 44 and 60 degrees geomagnetic latitude in the northern or southern hemisphere. The higher the value, the more significant the auroral/geomagnetic storm.

Technical, as our alerting predictions are produced in advance, it can't be called a Kp index. Ours is a predicted Kp index.

Can I link to your website?

Provided your site doesn't provide socially unacceptable things (like porn etc.), then feel free to link to our website. Please link to: http://www.AuroraChasers.com/

We would also appreciate contact with you so we can keep you updated if our links ever change. Also, we may link back to your website, if your material is of interest to our visitors.

Can I publish your photos on my website?

You need our permission to display our pictures on your website. All pictures are copyright to Mark Simpson.

For non-commercial websites, I normally provide permission with a few stipulations for free.

For commercial websites, we normally charge depending on the application.

Any person/corporation who copies or displays our pictures on a website without our permission will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

To obtain permission, please Contact Us detailing the images you're interested in, the website in question and how you wish to use them.

I wish to use your photos in my book, company logo, background for my screen, can I do this?

You need our permission to use our pictures. All pictures are copyright to Mark Simpson.

For non-commercial use, I normally provide permission with a few stipulations for free.

For commercial use, we normally charge depending on the application.

We can provide high resolution images for various applications as required.

Any person/corporation who copies or uses our pictures without our permission will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

To obtain permission, please Contact Us detailing the images you're interested in, the application in question and how you wish to use them.

Where do you take your pictures?

Most of my pictures are taken around the Calgary (Alberta, Canada) area (on the edge of the Rocky Mountains). I also take photos in Banff, Canmore, Scott Lake, Kananaskis Country, Lake Louise and Jasper.

I live near the Calgary area, can I join you to view auroras?

I welcome company on late night drives. However, I do tend to go out at short notice and drive long distances. Anybody who wishes to join me, should be able to stay up till the early hours, have transportation (to get to me, then we can car pool from there).

You can Contact Me to discuss.

Do you sell your photos?

Yes we do. You can purchase Limited Edition Prints and Screensavers.

I want to travel to see the aurora, where is the best place?

The auroral oval is always centered over the magnetic north pole and there is always an auroral oval. The best place to see them is where the auroral oval regularly lives. However, there isn't much civilization there.

Some good places that are very near the oval (or under it) most of the time with civilization are: Fairbanks (Alaska, USA), Dawson City (Yukon, Canada), Yellowknife (NWT, Canada), Gillam (Manitoba, Canada), Reykjavik (Iceland), Tromso (Norway).

Some of these places are very small cities, and might not have all the ammenities you're used to. However there can be a lot of fun had, with Skiing, Dog Sledding, Skidooing and other winter entertainment. They can also be very cold.

Be careful of the weather. If it's cloudy, you still won't see the aurora, so it's wise to pick a few days vacation to make sure you get clear skies.

Also, these towns suffer from 24 hour daylight, or nearly 24 hour daylight (where the sky won't become totally dark). Do some research and pick the correct time of year to avoid this. (If you speak to a person at a hotel at your destination, they should be able to help you with regard to this).

For North American, Fairbanks and Yellowknife are probably the best choices.

Are the Northern Lights and Aurora Borealis the same thing?

Technically the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis) are seen in the Northern Hemisphere, and the Southern Lights (Aurora Australis) are seen in the Southern Hemisphere. But it's all the same thing really.

Where's the best place to live?

Places where there's a reasonable population base and frequent auroras are, mid Southern Canada and mid Northern USA (i.e. Central Time Zone). This is because the Magnetic North pole is in Northern Canada.

However you can see the Northern Lights anywhere.

What is Pulsating Aurora?

Pulsating aurora is a rare type of aurora. It is very dim, and fast. I liken it to someone dropping paint drops on the atmosphere. Each pulse tends to last 1-2 seconds and is very fast. You tend to see it later on during the night/storm and usually directly overhead after you have dark adapted your eyes for a while.

Can I video the aurora?

Yes, just about. If you have a very good video camera that has 0 Lux capability, and you play with the settings. If you can record star constellations on it, auroras will work. (Switch the Infra Red LED off).

Often the quality is poor though, due to the noise generated in the CCD in the video camera. One trick to reduce noise is to fast forward the film (in play mode) after you've recorded it.

There are some very specialist and expensive video cameras that record the aurora well, but they tend to be used by research organizations at or near the arctic.

I live in X, we can't see auroras here, correct?

Most places can see auroras. You just have to learn about them, and look for them.

My neighbours and friends say there is never an aurora at our location, is this true?

Most people don't look at the night sky, or live in light polluted cities. The time most auroras are visible is when everyone is in bed.

Do I need a telescope to see an aurora?

Using a telescope to see an aurora is like using a magnifying glass to view the mountains. Infact, astronomers who live in places where the aurora occurs frequently, quite often dislike it, because it brightens the sky and stops them seeing the dimmer astronomical sights. Your eyes are definately the best tool to see the aurora.

How often is the aurora seen?

The frequency the aurora is seen changes throughout the solar cycle. The Solar cycle is 11 years in length, and varies between a maximum and minimum. At the maximum we see many auroras (and strong ones), and at the minimum we see fewer (and typically weaker). Currently we are just coming off a solar maximum (2003), so you can see them quite regularly.

More auroras are typically seen near the equinox's (March/April and September/October) than at other times of the year, although they can happen at any time.

Depending on the Kp index for your location, you can expect to see auroras:

Kp Index Approx. Auroras Visible Per Year

2 100

4 20

6 10

8 or higher 5

Best time of year to view the aurora?

Because the earths magnetic field is weakest near the equinox's, more auroras are seen in March/April and September/October. However they can happen at any time of the year.

Can the Aurora be seen in the Southern Hemisphere?

They can be seen in both hemispheres. However due to the lack of population in the Southern Hemisphere, you don't tend to hear about it as much. When an aurora is occuring in the Northern Hemisphere, it also occurs in the Southern Hemisphere at the same time. Infact some research shows that the patterns are mirrored in both Hemispheres at the same time.