February 24th, 2026 - Norway’s Century-Long Study of the Northern Lights

The world’s first permanent northern lights observatory sits atop Mount Halde in Norway, a small stone structure built in 1899 by physicist and Arctic explorer Kristian Birkeland. The observatory was a pioneering site for the scientific study of the auroras, allowing early 20th-century researchers to observe the dazzling phenomenon. Norway is regarded as the birthplace of auroral research, with the country’s scientists being among the first to study, analyze, and photograph the northern lights, which had captivated people for centuries.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Birkeland developed a groundbreaking theory about auroras. His theory, still widely accepted, explained that auroras occur when charged particles from the sun collide with Earth’s magnetic field, causing atoms in the atmosphere to release light. Different colors in the auroras correspond to different atoms, such as green and red from oxygen and purple from nitrogen. Birkeland’s work established the basis for the study of auroras that continues today.

The observatory on Mount Halde, where Birkeland and his team conducted early experiments, was relocated in 1926 to Tromso, a coastal town where research continues on solar events and Earth’s magnetic field. Despite the challenges of living in the harsh winter conditions of Halde, Birkeland’s legacy lives on. After the observatory was damaged during World War II, efforts to restore it began in the 1980s, preserving the history of early aurora research.

Today, a new radar system is set to begin operating in Skibotn, a town situated between Tromso and Mount Halde. This modern radar system, which consists of 10,000 antennas, will study Earth’s upper atmosphere and auroras in great detail. The radar system is part of a broader initiative to gain a deeper understanding of space weather and auroras. The system’s ability to create three-dimensional images of plasma, ionized gases that form as a result of space weather events, will help scientists better understand auroral phenomena and their interactions with the Earth’s ionosphere.

Northern Norway remains a prime location for auroral research, sitting above the auroral oval, where solar particles are concentrated. The Tromso Geophysical Observatory has mapped hundreds of aurora colors and categorized various forms of the phenomenon, such as arcs, curtains, and coronas. The observatory’s legacy continues through a vast collection of data and equipment, such as magnetometers and glass plate photographs of auroras taken by early scientists. Space physicist Njal Gulbrandsen emphasized the importance of maintaining long-term data, allowing future researchers to continue building on previous discoveries.

The new EISCAT 3D radar facility in Skibotn will further expand the study of the ionosphere by transmitting radio waves and measuring how they are scattered by free electrons. The radar will work in coordination with similar sites in Finland and Sweden, providing scientists with a detailed understanding of auroras and space weather. Researchers will be able to create detailed images of the auroras, revealing the complex interactions between the solar wind, the Earth’s magnetic field, and the atmosphere. This sophisticated technology will bring scientists closer to understanding the microphysics behind auroras, continuing the work started by Birkeland over a century ago.

Word of the Day (Merriam-Webster) - Umpteen (adj, UMP-teen) - Umpteen is an informal adjective meaning "very many" or "indefinitely numerous."

Example: The artist has painted the same subject umpteen times, yet each piece has its own unique quality.

Image credit: Unsplash