There are many charming myths and folkloric legends telling stories about the Northern Lights, many claiming them to be spirits of ancestors or messages from the heavens.
The scientific explanation, as is so often the case, is far less mysterious and enchanting but enlightening and interesting nonetheless. The aurora borealis are named after the Latin phrase meaning “northern dawn” and are caused by solar winds interacting with the Earth’s ionosphere. Most of the winds, consisting of charged solar particles sent Earthwards by solar flares or explosions simply pass the Earth by and disappear into space but some enter the atmosphere, colliding with atoms and molecules which absorb the particles’ energy. In order to return to their normal state, these atoms and molecules emit photons, or light particles, giving us the Northern Lights.
The lights are best seen in between October and March, far away from artificial light, beneath the aurora oval which usually circles the Earth between 60° – 70° of latitude, roughly level with Bergen and Honningsvåg respectively.