In a stunning display of nature’s beauty, skywatchers around the world witnessed a rare natural event: the Perseid meteor shower that coincided with Northern Lights.
the Perseid meteor shower The peak was expected, as it occurs annually when land It passes through the debris – small pieces of ice and rocks – left behind. comet swift-tuttlewhich last approached Earth in 1992. However, the simultaneous appearance of the aurora was unexpected.
While meteorologists expected some Geomagnetic activity over the weekendWhich prompted the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Space Weather Prediction Center to issue a Geomagnetic Storm Warning for August 9-11, Space weather Aurora borealis can be unpredictable, and only occur under the right conditions.
Did you miss it?
If you miss the Perseid meteor shower’s peak, don’t worry — the Perseid meteor shower will continue until around August 24. While the number of meteors visible per hour will be lower than at its peak, there are still opportunities to catch a glimpse.
However, things went well over the weekend. While some stargazers caught fleeting glimpses of the Perseids, others witnessed the dancing Northern Lights, and some were lucky enough to see both at once! This unique overlap allowed photographers to capture some truly stunning images.
Here, we take a look at some of the best.
Photographer Omer Serkan Kirkos captured this image of the Perseid meteor shower and a display of the northern lights at the Gölbe-Sternen Park in Havel, Havelland district of Brandenburg, Germany on August 13, 2024.
Mike Wickersham captured a colorful Perseid meteor shower, creating a colorful aurora borealis that rivaled the skies over Lincoln City, Oregon, USA.
“Perseid meteors and aurora borealis on display tonight in Lincoln, Oregon!” Wickersham wrote in Posted on X.
In the UK, Andrew Hawkes enjoyed a beautiful display of the Perseid meteor shower and a spontaneous explosion of the Northern Lights off the outskirts of Harrogate, North Yorkshire.
“I was photographing the Perseid meteor shower with a friend when I saw some light shining behind a tree. At first I thought it was artificial lighting, but when I looked back at the camera, I could see the aurora,” Hawkes told Space.com in an email.
Hawks certainly found himself in the right place at the right time.
“I moved the camera to better frame the aurora and said to my friend, ‘All we need now is a meteor,’ and just in time, the meteor in the picture appeared across the frame.”
Hawkes also captured stunning footage of the aurora borealis and the Perseid meteor shower. This is the video that plays at the beginning of this article.
Greg Gage captured 933 stunning images of the aurora borealis and Perseid meteors lighting up the sky over Sistersville, West Virginia, USA.
Gage then created an impressive timelapse of the night of August 11/12 which can be seen in the video at the top of the article, covering nearly 6 hours from 10pm to 4am.
“It’s not often that I stay up all night, but this night was worth it,” Gage said in an email to Space.com.
Below is a still image from the video showing the Perseid meteor streaking across a sky filled with aurora.
“This is the best meteor shot I’ve ever taken during the Perseid meteor shower,” Gage continued.
Tyler Levat captured images of the Perseid meteor shower and the Northern Lights from Las Vegas, Nevada, USA on August 12.
“I didn’t expect this,” Levat said in an email to Space.com. “From about 45 minutes away from Las Vegas, Nevada, I couldn’t believe my eyes.”
The aurora was visible to the naked eye for about 20 minutes, Levat said, adding: “I loved every second of it.”
Michelle Christman sent us this photo taken at 11:04 p.m. local time on Sunday, August 11 at Timber Park in Estacada, Oregon.
Gunjan Sinha captured an incredibly vibrant display of the Northern Lights over central Saskatchewan, Canada. They also appear to have captured the Perseids streaking across the sky in the first image. Scroll through the gallery to see the increasingly colorful aurora borealis.
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For those who can’t see the Northern Lights, the Perseids still put on a spectacular show.
photographer Josh Deary I captured a very beautiful view of the Perseid meteor shower over Stonehenge, UK.
The image below consists of 43 sub-images of meteors taken over the course of three and a half hours.
“Celestial fireworks reveal connections across time. Debris from the ancient Comet Swift-Tuttle, which formed at the dawn of our solar system. Observed from the Old Palace — charting the motions of celestial bodies. A compelling narrative across the mysterious, meaningless time,” Derry told Space.com in an email.
Derry’s image also appears as NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day!
photographer Resty Spirosky, From Macedonia, a stunning image was captured of a single Perseid meteor streaking across the sky over Lake Ohrid, one of the deepest and oldest lakes in Europe. The glow of forest fires can be seen in the distant mountains.
“We spent about two hours planning this shot and were lucky to capture it while enjoying the Perseid meteor shower, where we saw more than 10 bright meteors in less than an hour,” Spirosky said in an email to Space.com.
Below, the Perseid meteor streaks across the sky above the archaeological site of Mount Nemrut in Adiyaman, southeastern Turkey on Aug. 11, 2024, in this image taken by photographer Kemal Aslan.
Here is another photo of the Perseid meteor shower over Mount Nemrut in Türkiye, this time taken by photographer Murat Sengol.
The ruins of Mount Nemrut are a UNESCO World Heritage Site, located at an elevation of approximately 7,053 feet (2,150 meters) above sea level.
Photographer Zuzana Gogova captures a streak of Perseids meteors across the sky above the Koloniki Sedlo Observatory in Polonieni National Park on August 13, 2024, in Kolonica, Slovakia.
Meanwhile, in Poland, a long-streaked Perseid meteor shines brightly over the Post Kamaldose Monastery in the village of Wegy, Suwalki region.
This image was taken by Sergey Gapon early on August 12, 2024.
For some who missed the Perseids, the vibrant and dazzling Northern Lights made up for it. Darlene Tanner saw what’s known as a polar halo, where the aurora’s rays create a crown-like shape overhead.
“It looked weird when I was standing under these things and looking straight up,” Tanner said in an email to Space.com.
These scenes were captured in the sky near Basho, Alberta, Canada.
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