Northern Lights: Magnifient views from the flight deck

Spectacular aerial images of the aurora borealis are captured from the flight deck, by a Canadian airline pilot.

By: Lorne Philpot

For many people seeing the Aurora Borealis is a bucket list activity but for some pilots, spectacular sightings of natural phenomena are part of a day’s work.

Not considered a job by some, but rather as a lifelong passion, many pilots are treated to spectacular aerial views as part of their daily duties. 

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THE AURORAS

Auroras or aurorae also commonly known as the polar lights, are a natural light display in Earth’s sky, predominantly seen in high-latitude regions around the Arctic and Antarctic. Auroras display dynamic patterns of brilliant lights that appear as curtains, rays, spirals, or dynamic flickers covering the entire sky.

In the Northern Hemisphere, the effect is known as the aurora borealis or the northern lights. The former term was coined by Galileo in 1619, from the Roman goddess of the dawn and the Greek name for the north wind. The aurora borealis is visible from areas around the Arctic such as Alaska, the Canadian Territories, Iceland, Greenland, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Siberia.

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In the Southern Hemisphere, the aurora australis or the southern lights has features almost identical to the aurora borealis and change simultaneously with changes in the northern auroral zone. The aurora australis is visible from high southern latitudes in Antarctica, Chile, Argentina, South Africa, New Zealand and Australia .

AURORA CHASING

Canadian Pilot Matt Melnyk took up photography when he became interested in natural phenomena encountered from the flight deck. Melnyk often shares photos of the spectacular aurora lights captured when piloting aircraft in the Canadian skies.   

Melnyk told CBC News about the joys of being able to see natural phenomena from the air and how this led him to become interested in photography.

“I’ve been flying for 20 years. I was able to see so many different cloud formations and natural weather phenomenon. I became super interested in the meteorological aspect of it all so I decided to take up photography.” Melnyk told CBC News.

“Sometimes it feels like we’re actually flying right inside of it. If you look to your left, you see it. If you look to the front, you see it. If you look to the right, you see it. And sometimes it’ll be so bright that its glowing green inside the flight deck.  Aurora chasing is a very big thing now.” Melnyk said.

SPECTACULAR VIEWS

The Northern Lights, the common name for an astrological phenomenon known as the aurora borealis, are one of the 7 natural wonders of the world. This curtain of coloured lights in the night sky becomes visible at certain times of the year in both hemispheres but is generally easier to see in the northern half of the globe.

Piloting an aircraft is often considered by to be a dream job. Not only are the opportunities to travel the world so appealing but for some people the spectacular views from the sky are reason enough to sign up for the job.