The Southern Lights
AURORA AUSTRALIS
Just like there's the Northern Lights - the Aurora Borealis phenomenon around the North Pole, there's an equivalent Aurora Australis centered around the South Pole (the Southern Lights). This aurora is more challenging to see due to the Earth's geography. Take a look a the Aurora Australis ring in a photo provided by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration:
As you can see, the ring only coveres Antarctica - a location that's not accessible to the public except for a few tours during summers, not in winter. Places in the South Island of New Zealand or in Tasmania are close. This means you may get to see the aurora at the horizon (not covering the entire sky) and it will be much weaker - the explanation we provided in our chapter on understanding the Northern Lights still holds.
We would not recommend you go on a trip to New Zealand or Tasmania specifically for seeing the Southern Lights, as you will be disappointed. On a typical night you will get to see a slight fog at the horizon (that will show as a green aurora band in pictures taken with a quality camera). In nights with more intense aurora activity (remember the Kp index?), the show may be available for viewing with the naked eye, but it will still be far less spectacular than the Northern Lights.
So don't go there specifically for the Southern Lights; but if you're in the general area on vacation, trying to get a glimpse of the Southern Lights will be a nice bonus.
The South Island of New Zealand and Tasmania have nice, light pollution-free skies at night with stunning views of the Milky Way. Best places to catch the Southern Lights include Hobart in Tasmania or Invercargil and Queenstown in New Zealand (you will not see the aurora from Patagoina in South America). As the lights will be visible at the horizon, you should try and reach a higher altitude on one of the nearby mountains.
Almost everything else presented in this guide will help with seeing the Southern Lights, including tips on light pollution, weather, moon phases, preparation and photography. Keep in mind that seasons in the Southern Hemisphere are reversed, so the darkest skies are between April and August.
This is the final chapter of our guide on seeing the Northern (and Southern!) Lights. If you have any questions, comments or suggestions please use our Contact page.
