From the vast windswept meadows, to the beautiful moss-covered rocks, and the towering mountains, greenery is everywhere in Iceland. But it is only in Iceland that you can see greenery even in the night. When the charged particles from solar wind impacts the earths magnetosphere, the skies above Iceland, being so close to the North pole, lights up in a brilliant display of greens, purples, reds and blues. And during a strong storm, one can even glimpse the rare occurrence of the dance of the aurora, when the bands of the aurora scintillate and change shape by the second.
This was captured during one such brilliant shows above the glacier of Fjallsjokull in Vatnajökull National Park in southern Iceland. See this in large in my 2025 calendar available, for purchase at this link.
Vatnajökull National Park
Iceland
A Blast of Red
The geomagnetic storm I witnessed in Iceland on Oct 10 led to perhaps one of the brightest auroral events I had ever witnessed. Even with my eyes blinded by the headlights while driving, I could still see the reds and the pinks in the sky. The splash of color in the sky danced and morphed continuously, highlighting an intensity of storm that was off the charts. A few moments later, when I stopped to take a look, the bulk of the auroral activity was occurring in the southern half of the skies.
I had never seen such bright band of red span across the entire sky from east to west. These colors show up rarely and only during intense storms where the charged solar particles react with Oxygen above 200mi (320km). The typical aurora with green hues occurs from this same reaction occurring at much lower altitudes (60-190mi or 100-300km). This is also why you see the greens band below the reds.
This storm continued for the entire night, though it ebbed and flowed throughout. I was glad I had an opportunity to witness this.
Fjallsárlón
Iceland
Once upon a Glacier
Once upon a time, a glacier used to run this this massive valley, descending from the mighty Vatnajökull whose eruption brought the transatlantic flights to a standstill. Though this glacier had paled in comparison to its parent, it still had been a voluminous mass of ice, stretching a few miles long and a mile wide. Alas, now this glacier has all but receded to its ice-cap, leaving behind a gorgeous glacier-scoured valley, a meltwater lake and tiny slivers of water that wind their way down to the ocean.
Standing atop this vista overlooking this valley, I can't help but imagine what this amazing sight would have been.
Sakftafell National Park