Skywatcher Delivers Stunning Image of Northern Lights

Green Belt Northen Lights
Skywatcher Kwon, O Chul of The World At Night (TWAN), shot this image of the Northern Lights at Yellowknife in northern Canada. (Image credit: (c)Kwon O Chul / TWAN)

It took a collision of charged particles from Earth’s magnetosphere and one veteran landscape astrophotographer from Seoul, Korea to deliver this green spectacle.

Skywatcher Kwon, O Chul of The World At Night (TWAN), traveled to Yellowknife in northern Canada with a Canon 5d mark II + 24mm lens to capture this image of the Northern Lights.

The northern and southern lights — also known as the aurora — are mostly witnessed in polar latitudes. A clash of charged particles from Earth's magnetosphere with atoms and molecules of Earth's atmosphere (at altitudes above 50 miles, or 80 km) cause these lights. Solar wind from the sun carries these particles to Earth.

Kwon often uses several medium-format and panorama-format film cameras in his exhibitions. The skywatcher “looks for the harmony between celestial motion and star trails, ancient relics, and Korean beautiful landscapes,” according to the TWAN website. 

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Contributing Writer and Producer

Nina Sen is a freelance writer and producer who covered night sky photography and astronomy for Space.com. She began writing and producing content for Space.com in 2011 with a focus on story and image production, as well as amazing space photos captured by NASA telescopes and other missions. Her work also includes coverage of amazing images by astrophotographers that showcase the night sky's beauty.