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the northern lights together, and more and
more messages are ticking into my inbox
every day. It’s very fun.”
Northern lights tourists flock to Tromsø
from around the globe, with almost half of
them from the UK. Last winter, however,
Visit Tromsø had visitors from 66 different
countries. Bakken observes that it is diffi­
cult for residents of northern Norway to
understand how powerful it is for someone
to see the northern lights for the first time.
“The other day I saw a couple from France
at the tour desk who stood and giggled
so much, they looked almost intoxicated.
They had seen the northern lights the
night before and were still in ecstasy the
next day,” she said.
The first aurora tourist
In 2008, the actress Joanna Lumley, known
for her performance in the TV series
­Absolutely Fabulous, came to northern
Norway and Svalbard with a BBC film
team to see the northern lights. Her visit
did a great deal to promote the idea of
travelling to experience the aurora. But
the first celebrity tourist to visit the north
was probably the French prince, Louis
Philippe.
Asgeir Brekke, professor emeritus at UiT’s
Department of Physics and Technology,
said the prince, who had to flee France
during the Revolution in 1789, travelled
incognito, including during a visit to
northern Norway. When he landed in
Finnmark, he fell in love with the region’s
natural beauty and landscape.
The prince returned to France in the
1830s and ascended to the throne. He then
decided to equip a ship for an expedition
to northern Norway and Svalbard. The
ship, which he called La Recherche (“The
Investigation”), sailed north and landed a
group in Bossekop, Alta. Their assignment
was to study the northern lights, including
measuring their altitude. They also had
artists who drew the northern lights. The
expedition and the artwork did a great deal
to create interest abroad in the northern
lights and northern Norway even then.
“Never heardof anyonewho
has been disappointed”
Brekke has worked at the Auroral
­Observatory in Tromsø since 1966. He
thinks it’s great that aurora tourism is
flourishing.
“I've worked on this topic for nearly 50
years and it has been my dream that the
northern lights would get better recog-
nition. Here we have worked with and
sold the concept of ‘the midnight sun’
for a hundred years - but the midnight
sun is only the sun. The northern lights
are unique. Think about it – only about
one 6000th of the world’s population can
­experience the northern lights regularly
and live in a place where it is a natural part
of the environment,” he says.
If you’re in Tromsø at night and wonder if
it’s worth putting on your warm clothes to
go out in the dark, you can now check on-
line first to see if the aurora is out dancing.
Magnar Gullikstad Johnsen, a researcher
at the TGO (Tromsø Geophysical
­Observatory), says that the Auroral
­Observatory has installed an auroral cam-
era on its roof. It has a fish-eye lens that
provides an image the whole sky, and the
image is updated automatically every two
minutes.
Johnsen is often out and looking for the
northern lights, and says that even though
he has worked extensively with the science
related to the phenomenon, he has not lost
his wonder at the experience.
“The northern lights are perhaps the most
spectacular natural phenomenon that
­exists, and I would love it if everyone could
come and experience it. I’ve never heard
of anyone who has been disappointed,” he
said.
See pictures from the all-sky camera at UiT’s Auroral
Observatory - fox.phys.uit.no/ASC/
University of Tromsø – Labyrint E/13 ••• 9
They had seen the northern lights the night before
and was still in ecstasy next day
“ FACTS about the aurora
borealis:
• It is a myth that it must be cold to be
able to see the northern lights. But
when it is cold, it is usually clear, and
that is what does the trick.
• The green and blood red colours at
the edge of the aurora are caused
by atomic oxygen, meaning just one
oxygen atom. The reddish-purple
on the bottom edge of the aurora is
caused by nitrogen.
• There are also auroras on Jupiter
and Saturn. All planets that have a
magnetic field have an aurora.
• The most powerful geomagnetic
storms from the sun have resulted in
auroras seen as far south as Egypt.
• A strong aurora display disrupts the
Earth’s magnetic field, and some-
times you can actually see a compass
needle move.
• Northern lights can affect both
electrical power networks and GPS.
In 1989, electric power was lost
throughout Quebec due to the
northern lights.
• An image of Kristian Birkeland and
his terrella are shown on the Norwe-
gian 200 kroner note.
Photo: Thilo Bubek.