It’s Friday, and the end of a looong week of peering into the far reaches of our solar system and being astounded by what we found. But as much as we love Pluto, we don’t need to gaze billions of miles away to see incredible sights. We’ve got them right here on Earth.
These stunning images of the northern lights were captured by astrophotographer Adam Woodworth in L’anse aux Meadows, Newfoundland—the only confirmed Viking settlement in North America—on the night of June 22nd and the early morning hours of June 23rd.
Woodworth, who spends a lot of his time starting at the stars and using high-powered cameras to reveal them as never seen by the human eye, counts himself very lucky to have witnessed such a cosmically awesome light show:
It was incredible! The aurora was coming from all directions it seemed like, this was the first time I’d witnessed a strong aurora display so far north. L’anse aux Meadows is near the northern most tip of Newfoundland, certainly the farthest north I’ve ever been. An experience I’ll never forget!
We’re lucky he did, too.
In this image, we see the faint outline of the galactic center of the Milky Way in the lower half of the frame. Nikon D810A, 14-24mm f/2.8 lens @ 14mm, f/2.8, 4 seconds, ISO 12,800.
Nikon D810A, Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 lens. Sky: Single shot at ISO 10,000, 14mm, f/2.8, 2.5 seconds. Foreground: Blend of 3 exposures for depth of field, ISO 6400, f/2.8, 6 seconds; ISO 1600, f/2.8, 180 seconds; ISO 1600, f/5.6, 120 seconds. Separate foreground exposures were used to capture better depth of field and lower noise in the foreground.
Nikon D810A, Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 lens @ 14mm, f/2.8, 2 seconds, ISO 10,000.
Lights dancing over the roof of a boathouse in the Norstead Viking replica village. Nikon D810A, 14-24mm f/2.8 lens @ 14mm, f/2.8, 2 seconds, ISO 12,800.
All images via Adam Woodworth and reproduced with permission. You can learn more about his photography techniques on www.adamwoodworth.com, where you can find a free written tutorial, as well as an in depth video tutorial for purchase. You can check out more of his work on Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, and Instagram.
Top image: Nikon D810A, Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 lens. Sky: Single shot at ISO 3200, 14mm, f/2.8, 1 second. Foreground: Single shot at ISO 1600, 14mm, f/5.6, 2 minutes.