When I first told people in Facebook that I am relocating to Ireland, someone commented that I should see the Aurora while I am here. That caught me off guard as I thought Auroras are only seen in the nordic countries and Iceland. When I came, I started to follow a facebook group that chases Aurora in Ireland. Tried to learn a few things from the messages. Alas, I managed to catch my second Aurora last night from the bedroom. It was an auspicious time too.. Caught it on 10th October, around 10 pm. This time, I was able to see the Aurora with the naked eye.

I always thought that Auroras can be seen in the northern skies all the time before I came here. I found out that it’s like the weather, it needs a few things to come together in order for Aurora to show. Having said that, it is a rare occurrence. 

How Auroras are formed

The chain of events for Auroras need to start with Corona Mass Ejection (CME) from the Sun.  Satellite orbiting the earth detects CME’s. It takes about 2 days for the CME to reach the earth.

Once CME reaches earth, it also needs to generate a certain level of Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF). the IMF needs to be have the right field strength in the right direction. The aurora chasers will look at Bz values. Negative Bz values means that the IMF is hitting south, where it will connect with earth’s magnetosphere. When Bz hits north, the earth’s magnetic fields will cancel out the IMF. Many times we get good CME but it is pointing north and no auroras.  

Like rain, auroras will come in waves. It will show for a while, then go away, then come back again.

Therefore seeing auroras are rare  in Ireland. We had 2 auroras in the year 2024 and that was extraordinary for the year. Another dream come true coming to Ireland.

And finally, we need to see whether the weather in the ground permits. Ireland mostly have thick cloud cover, the skies in Ireland is always unsettled. To see auroras, we need very clear skies. The aurora prediction is a hit and miss, most of the time it is hyped up. So it is good that we are staying in Ireland, and just wait for a good time to see aurora out of our bedroom window.