Aurora Alert (slightly off-topic)
By Birding-Aus, on May 29th, 2014
Hi everyone The wonderful people at BOM have set up a page about the possibility of seeing Aurora Australis from Tasmania and Victorian coasts this winter. http://media.bom.gov.au/social/blog/216/aurora-australis-coming-soon-to-a-night-sky-near-you/ There’s even a mailing list to send out alerts when conditions are right for an aurora display! Just something to look at during these long winter nights when the opportunities for birding are a bit limited 
Russell Woodford Geelong _______________________________________________ Birding-Aus mailing list Birding-Aus@birding-aus.org To change settings or unsubscribe visit: http://birding-aus.org/mailman/listinfo/birding-aus_birding-aus.org
Hi folks, Indeed it is possible to see an aurora in NSW. A beautiful aurora was photographed from Kiama on 20th February this year. If you do a Google search for “aurora australis photo kiama” you’ll find the photos and video on various social media and news sites (and I’ve just noticed the video is also at the bottom of the page that Russell linked to). On 30th April this year the aurora alerts started coming in so, inspired by seeing the Kiama photos, I headed out onto a dark Kings Tableland with my camera and tripod and managed to photograph a very faint aurora. This was in the NSW Blue Mountains! It was not visible to the naked eye but the photos (30 second exposure) revealed a faint pink glow low in the southern sky. That’s the closest I’ve ever come to seeing one so far, but seeing one properly is definitely on my bucket list – as much as any bird! And to tie all this back to birding, while I was there I heard a Boobook, Owlet-nightjar and Powerful Owl calling (the latter echoing up from the Jamison Valley). Cheers, Carol At 12:38 AM +1000 30/5/14, Carl Clifford wrote: _______________________________________________ Birding-Aus mailing list Birding-Aus@birding-aus.org To change settings or unsubscribe visit: http://birding-aus.org/mailman/listinfo/birding-aus_birding-aus.org
Thanks for the alert, Russell. Living on Phillip Island we should have good viewing , especially along the south coast, so knowing when to go looking would be great. I’ve only seen one or two auroras during my 28 + years of living here. probably due my being indoors when they occur. I’ve subscribed. Elizabeth Shaw Phillip Island Victoria —–Original Message—– Sent: Thursday, May 29, 2014 9:47 PM Hi everyone The wonderful people at BOM have set up a page about the possibility of seeing Aurora Australis from Tasmania and Victorian coasts this winter. http://media.bom.gov.au/social/blog/216/aurora-australis-coming-soon-to-a-night-sky-near-you/ There’s even a mailing list to send out alerts when conditions are right for an aurora display! Just something to look at during these long winter nights when the opportunities for birding are a bit limited
Russell Woodford Geelong _______________________________________________ Birding-Aus mailing list Birding-Aus@birding-aus.org To change settings or unsubscribe visit: http://birding-aus.org/mailman/listinfo/birding-aus_birding-aus.org _______________________________________________ Birding-Aus mailing list Birding-Aus@birding-aus.org To change settings or unsubscribe visit: http://birding-aus.org/mailman/listinfo/birding-aus_birding-aus.org
Hopefully we might see one in Sydney, as we did in 1950. I still remember that night, quite magical. Thanks for the heads up Russ. Carl Clifford _______________________________________________ Birding-Aus mailing list Birding-Aus@birding-aus.org To change settings or unsubscribe visit: http://birding-aus.org/mailman/listinfo/birding-aus_birding-aus.org