Aurora Brought by Solar Wind on Friday the 13th

Look for the cloud bank above the horizon.

This will be a Friday the 13th that will live in my memory. It could not have been a more perfect day. If you saw the last post about Bluesky Dogsledding, that was how we spent the afternoon.

At the start of the evening, the weather forecast was not promising at all, and it seemed unlikely there would be any clear skies. There was solar activity expected to be affecting us soon, but if the sky is cloudy, it does not matter how much auroral magic is happening up there You won't see it.

After dinner, I made a quick trip to the dome and was able to see a fuzzy Jupiter, but not a single star. Off I went to a wonderful photography lecture by David Marx. Jim Halfpenny and David Marx are leading a fabulous photography workshop focusing on the art of photographing the aurora. Suddenly we heard footsteps running in the hallway- usually a good sign that there is something worth seeing outside. Well the heavens had cleared, and the stars were magnificent. It wasn't long before a band of aurora was coloring the sky.

Within half an hour the show was on. During the next 3 hours we were treated to almost constant auroral delights. Not only was it a beautiful night sky, but it was a beautiful night down at ground level too. There was almost no wind, and this is a pretty rare thing up here. The temperature was a little above zero, which is also the warmest we have experienced in our time in Churchill.

Throughout the night, we changed lenses, sometimes using the fisheye lens. This lens allows you to take in more of the sky than you could otherwise see. For me,  I love to see the larger picture of the movement of the aurora.

Several Volunteers Viewing from atop the Giant Snowpile

At some point during the night, I walked out to the pond for the first time ever. Members of the photography group were heading out there, and I very gratefully went along with them. I was surprised by the quiet! It really never seems noisy near CNSC, but somehow being surrounded by only the pond and the forest accentuated the stillness of the night. Aurora danced all around us, and at times created a cathedral of light up above. So thankful to be in this very spot on the best Friday the 13th ever!

Look for the Big Dipper in the top center of this photo.

+ChurchillNorthernStudiesCenter

A Visit to Bluesky Dogsledding

Brian and I were sent off with the Arctic Skies group for an afternoon at Bluesky Dogsledding! There was a bit of light snow in the air, but the temperature was reasonably warm.

Gerald and Jenafor Azure greeted us warmly, and made everyone feel welcome. After a short review of dogsledding commands, sled safety, and dog training, the sled rides began. Eventually there were two teams up and running with a toboggan type of sled. Gerald and Jenafor switch out the dogs throughout the day so that the dogs never get too used to a particular dog as their partner. Evidently, if they do get too comfortable with one certain partner, they can get cranky when a change needs to be made.

While we waited for our turn, we were entertained by feeding gray jays out of our hands. I also had lots of fun photographing other teams as they took off and then as they came through the last loop of the trail. Jenafor and our program director also took some photos, so I cannot take credit for all of these.

Here is the line-up for sled #2

Gerald told us that they have 30 dogs, as well as some puppies they are raising. All of their dogs are a husky mix, except for two purebred huskies. The very pretty lady with the tan and cream coat is Scarlet. Scarlet and her sister Via are known at the dogyard as the princesses. 

Here are a few irresistible doggie photos. I always get even more excited about our upcoming ride when I hear/see the enthusiasm in the dogyard as the selections are about to begin. Every dog is barking, "Take me, take me!!"

Scarlet

Below is a beautiful pair of new mitts that belong to Gerald and Jenafor. I would imagine this is arctic fox fur, but I forgot to ask. They are a work of art, but also invaluable in the cold weather of the subarctic. Check out Gerald's mitt in the photo above.

An Evening of Majestic Aurora

Tonight we were treated to a wondrous display of northern lights. These were not fast moving lights, but they were all over the heavens. This actually makes them easier to photograph in some ways.

Brian experimented with some light painting, and we took some photos of folks with the backdrop of the aurora. Brian used his headlamp to just light up faces for 1 to 2 seconds. Here is our aurora souvenir shot.

The sky kept changing, and we experimented with different lenses. Brian is still working magic with his fisheye lens.

The whole evening was made even more exciting because the photography group had arrived. Their fearless leaders are David Marx and Jim Halfpenny. After Brian and I finished our kitchen chores, we sat in on some of the lectures on photo composition and the art of focusing in extreme conditions. Below is the aurora dancing over CNSC. It is such a luxury to be able to go inside to warm up and regroup!

Aurora over Churchill Northern Studies Centre

It is always so much fun to experience the aurora with folks who are seeing the wonder for the first time. Great people! Great arctic sky tonight!

All Aboard! Train Ride to Churchill

The train left Winnipeg on March 8th, and I arrived in Churchill on Tuesday morning. It is about a 44 hour ride, with speeds varying between 20-30 miles an hour. It depends on track conditions evidently. This year there were very few passengers on board, and I had the whole sleeper car to myself for much of the trip.

Our train pulls into the Thompson, Manitoba station

In Thompson, we had a few hours to ourselves, so I walked into town to do a little shopping and get some fresh air. On my way into town, I came across some ravens. I always wonder if I am able to tell them apart from crows, but these birds are huge! In fact they are nicknamed "Thompson's Turkey". I can see why. Also, their call sounded very little like the crows dining at our compost pile Franklin, Maine.

I came across a familiar wooded area which I recognized from our walk two years ago. I believe they are alder trees, but I will correct this once I confirm an identification. They look much like birch trees, but with a soft, pale tan color.

A Stand of Alder Trees

The train pulled into Churchill early Tuesday morning, and the rest of the day was filled with warm welcomes from our northern family. Brian and I went out for a walk in the afternoon. We checked out an igloo where two folks had slept the night before. It must have been a long night! I am laughing because I can't imagine how this was possible.

Brian has always wanted his photo with this road sign. This makes him smile, as there is only one road!

We proceeded to the other side of CNSC to investigate a quinzhee which had been built by some junior rangers. Brian thought we could just walk out to it, but you can see why snowshoes would have been a good idea. Check out the sticks. We learned last year that when you construct a quinzhee, you create a large pile of snow, insert some sticks  about 12 inches into the surface, and then as you hollow it out, the sticks let you know when you should not go any farther. I had forgotten that.

 After our walk, we were treated to some very beautiful sundogs with quite intense rainbow colors.

There wasn't much of an aurora forecast, but with some patience, we came up with a little bit of aurora. The skies were beautifully clear, and I spent a lot of time in the dome last night.

I will end with one of my favorite views out the back window of CNSC. The other is just a fun sculpting of snow. No idea what is going on with the little trees at a bizarre angle.

A Return to the Icy Lights

The 2015 aurora season is well underway at the Churchill Northern Studies Centre. Brian has been there since mid February, and we will both stay through the end of March.

For those who live in New England, you know how much snow we are leaving behind. So when I arrived in Winnipeg, Manitoba, I was surprised to see that they had relatively little! I guess this is more typical, but last year they had a lot. The weather has made for a very pleasant visit to the city.

Hotel Fort Garry

Once again I am staying at the Hotel Fort Garry, a grand and elegant hotel from the early 1900s. I am on the floor (and corridor) that houses a ghost, but it is evidently a very quiet ghost. Haven't heard a thing. I do love coffee delivered to my door first thing in the morning.

The train station is right down the street, and this snow sculpture sits in the middle of a very busy intersection. I could not find any info on the subject of the sculpture, but it is a reclining fiddle player in a stocking cap. The cap is obscured by the tree trunk.

Here is the snow sculpture with the Hotel Garry in the background.

Today I went out to visit The Forks, an historic area of Winnipeg, which is located at the confluence of the Red River and the Assiniboine River. For 6,000+ years, the Forks has been the meeting place for early Aboriginal peoples. Later, it was a meeting place for European fur traders, and then for tens of thousands of immigrants.

Inside, The Forks reminds me of Quincy Market back in Boston, MA. It is always fun to see the shops and to try some of the tasty food. Outside, there is all kinds of opportunity for fun on the river. Children are learning to skate, hockey is going on in many locations, there are snow and ice sculptures, and some interesting warming huts. There is also a snow lounge, where you can sit on a snow sofa or relax in a snow chair.

Today I met my first Samoyed. He was indeed a gentle giant, and he could also have won a beauty contest.

Tomorrow I pack for the train, which is only a tenth of a mile away. On our return trip, we plan to visit the human rights and human spirit museum. We have been trying to go for the past two years. Third year will be the charm. It is open!

Squeaky Feet- A Noisy Walk in Churchill

Brian and I are back home, safe and sound, but we think about Churchill all the time. We check Spaceweather, and on a day when the sun is active, we wish we could get ourselves to Churchill for a visit to the dome. Most days we check the Churchill weather to see just how much warmer we are now! Actually, I miss the cold air. When people say they could never take the cold, I tell them, "Well, it's a dry cold, so it doesn't seem so bad!" Sounds crazy, but there is some truth in that. On a damp, rainy day here at 38F, I find myself thinking that I'd prefer the dry cold.

This is one of the many tundra ponds.

So speaking of a dry climate, and remember that Churchill is really located in something close to a polar desert, I made this short video I had meant to share. One of the first things you notice when you walk anywhere in Churchill, is that your feet are squeaking like crazy as your boots come in contact with the snow. This is snow that will never make a snowball- at least not at the time of year when we were there.
I made this video on the day I went out to a local pond with my friend Phillip, CNSC's very capable maintenance staff. It was my day off, and Phillip invited me to accompany him on a water run.  CNSC pumps water from the bottom of a tundra pond into a 1200 gallon tank. It only takes about 15 minutes! Most of the tundra ponds are wetlands and drainage areas, and only a couple feet deep. Not surprisingly, most tundra ponds are frozen solid. This one was about 6-8 feet deep with 4 feet of ice. Phillip drilled the hole without power tools, and voila! Icy fresh water. Back at CNSC, in a state of the art green building, the water is filtered, treated, and ready for use. 

Phil drills a hole through at least 4 feet of ice.

Here is the tank, which holds 1200 gallons.

This is a photo I took on the day I went out with Phillip.

 The landscape was quite beautiful, with the icy surfaces reflecting the blue sky that day.  I loved looking down through the ice, and I've included a few photos that Brian took on an Ice Crack Photo Shoot with his buddy Roger Starman Woloshyn. Sounded crazy to me, but I was very impressed with their photos!

They arrive at their destination!