Aurora Australis - the southern lights seen from Dunedin, New Zealand

Last night, conditions were ripe for viewing the aurora australis from the southern parts of New Zealand. So, Will and I drove out to the Otago Peninsula to escape Dunedin's light pollution and see the light show.

From Sandfly Bay, I could make out a light blue/gray glow on the horizon.  It turns out that Will's camera could capture a much different picture than what I was seeing - the results are amazing!

Here's a brief video of the aurora australis:

Video credit: Will Styles

We watched the sky for a bit over an hour.  Here is one of my favorite shots that Will took when we first arrived:

Photo credit: Will Styles 

Another spectator taking photos was a bit grumpy about the clouds, but it turns out that the clouds made the photos more interesting!

Photo credit: Will Styles 

Perhaps next time we'll see a bit more sky.  I imagine seeing the Milky Way and the aurora would be spectacular!