Nice job hubby, captured those colours and vertical lines!
What we saw here in Northern BC was pretty incredible. I've seen the Northern Lights dozens of times, but this was the most intense ever. I walked out into my backyard just after midnight, hours before the peak intensity, and it was like another world. The whole sky, from horizon to horizon, was a show. What was more interesting than the colours, was the movements. It wasn't just bands of light that dance in front of your eyes. It was very fast motion, and very distinct shapes. It looked like roiling smoke, except in fast motion. Like a portal opening up. Structures tens or hundreds of miles across, rapidly changing in shape and soaring across the sky. It looked like shimmering liquid being poured out over the atmosphere above us. Like babbling sparking water in a brook, always changing. It seemed like I was looking up at a massive computer screen, watching a show created with really incredible software. Huge, fast, bright, but totally silent. Eerie, yet beautiful in an otherworldly way. I have never seen anything like that, and I've been looking up (and doing amateur astronomy) for 40 years. I've never even seen anything like it online, or in science documentaries. I wish I could have captured it, but my camera wouldn't pick anything up, except my flabbergasted commentary. I've looked, but I don't see anyone who managed to get video of what I saw. Maybe it's not possible? Or maybe it is, but I happened to see something unique? I'm telling you, it dropped my jaw, and that never happens.
I believe it brother! I am in Iowa and, at one point, we could see it with the naked eye! No phone required. We were all just amazed. I could see the red and what looked like white dazzling smoke dancing below it. It was incredible! So rare to see down here! It was breathtaking. We tried to video it but it was crap. Need a longer exposure time and increased light sensitivity than the video equipment we have can do.
Saw what with the naked eye? The Lights?
Hmmm, well here they were bright enough to light everything up like it was a cloudy afternoon (even though there was no moon). I could have done my gardening by the light from the Lights. I couldn't get it to show up on my camera, but I have vivid memories of it!
Usually, when the Aurora dips south enough for Iowa to see it, it is so dim that we need to see it through the night vision and extended exposure on a smart phone. Hubby has one. Otherwise we can't see it. So yeah, we were amazed by all the colors we could see without the tech.
Check out suspicious observers. The reason it's so intense and seen so far south is because of the Earth's weakening magnetic field, due to the pole shift that is due any time now. Plus with the extra strength of x7 and x9 solar pulses that headed our way. Something like this was expected.