Podcaster: Exodus Chun-Long Sit
Title: ASTROMAN: The Dark Sky Guardian – Aurora Hunting in the Polar Regions During the Solar Maximum
Organization: IAU NAEC & Co-NOC Hong Kong, China
Link: https://exodussit.wordpress.com/english
Description: Description: The Solar Maximum is here, and with it comes a surge of breathtaking aurora displays across the sky! Join host Exodus Chun-Long Sit, IAU Astronomy Education Coordinator for Hong Kong, as he dive into what solar maximum really means, why the auroras dance brighter during this time, and how you can chase these lights under dark skies.
“ASTROMAN: the Dark Sky Guardian” is a podcast channel that aims to explore popular science in multiple disciplines and research on interdisciplinary approaches, such as sustainability, dark-sky protection, astrophotography, space exploration, astronomy innovation, inclusive science communication, and STEAM Education by integrating science and arts.
Bio: Exodus CL Sit, also known as the ASTROMAN, is a transmedia astronomy educator, popular science author, STEAM educator, and science communicator in Hong Kong. He is recently the National Astronomy Education Coordinator (Chair of Hong Kong, China) of the International Astronomical Union and President of Starrix. He was also an International Committee Member of the Dark Sky International, regularly organizing public lectures at the Hong Kong Space Museum and the Hong Kong Science Museum. He was also the author of a popular science book “Decoding the Starry Night: A Guide to Stargazing and Astrophotography”.
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Transcript:
Hello and welcome to Astro Man, the Dark Sky Guardian, the podcast where we delve into the wonders of the universe and explore the natures in astronomy and space phenomena. I am your host, Excellus Chen on Seats, IAU National Astronomy Education Coordinator and also the co-National Outreach Coordinator of Hong Kong, China.
And today we are going to talk about the solar activity maximum in 2025 and the breathtaking world displace it begins. It brings whether you are an astronomy enthusiast or just someone who appreciates the beauty of nature, and this episode is for you. So what is solar maximum?
The sun goes through an 11-year solar cycle with periods of high and low activity and the peak of this cycle is known as the solar maximum. Where the sun is at its most active, producing more sunspots that we can observe through the solar telescope and also the sunspots projector. And where the sun section is most initially predicted to occur around in the upcoming 1 to 2 years.
Recent observations suggest that the solar maximum has already begun and it is believed that this activity will be continued until 2026. And actually there are one of the most spectacular effects of increased solar activities is the aurora which also known as the Northern Lights, Aurora Borealis and also the Southern Lights, we also call the Aurora Astrolis. And this natural light display occurs when charged particles from the sun interact with the earth, display or occur with charge across the sky atmosphere and I would say the aurora appears due to the interactions between the solar winds and the earth atmosphere.
And during the solar maximum, the sun emits more solar flares and we can observe more solar particles. And there is also a question about the colors of aurora. So regarding the color of aurora, it depends on the energy of the particles and the altitude at which they collab with the atmospheric gas.
For example, the most common color is green produced by collisions at around 120 km and there are also some rare colors for example, the red aurora or violet aurora. And where can we see the aurora? So the best place to see the aurora is almost near the Arctic Circle or the Antarctica Circle.
So if you wish to observe the Northern Lights, which we also call the Aurora Borealis Recommending you to go to the places near the Arctic Circle. Not really need necessarily to be inside the Arctic Circle, but near that area including different countries, including the Nordics, Sweden, Norway, Iceland, Greenland and also North America including Alaska and also Canada. And besides, the K-P index, which we also call the intensity of the aurora, which is really high and more places in lower altitude would be having chances to observe the aurora phenomenon including in Europe, in Asia, including China, Japan and there are a lot of places that we are able to see these magical, wonderful things with frequent aurora displays, but not really common if we are going to places which is in relatively low altitude. So I want to share with you some tips for refueling the aurora. So one important thing is about the dark sky.
So always remember to find a location with minimal light pollution for the best fuels and always to be patient because aurora cannot be truly predicted unless there is a really strong solar wind observed or noticed by some official aurora organizations and always to be well prepared for spending several nights waiting for the clear skies and also the active aurora and we always remember to dress warmly because usually if you go to observe the aurora it would be a really cold place and you also have to wait until you are able to see the aurora and be safe and enjoy the moment and respect the environment and also to respect the local regulations following some guidelines and some styles and manners that I have shared in the previous episodes and finally the solar maximum might be a really great chance to allow us to really enjoy the moment of observing the aurora and if you are planning to observe to see the last night I hope after this episode can inspire you to explore the wonders of the universe and thank you for listening to this episode and thank you everyone
End of podcast:
365 Days of Astronomy
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