wdirmag.com

The Finnish phrase for Northern Lights or Aurora Borealis, revontulet, translates directly as fox’s burns. The ancient Finns trusted aurora were made by a fox running along snow-covered fells moving its tail on the snowdrifts and placing a trail of sparks into the sky. Again, some Sami and Siberian individuals believed that aurora came from the wounds of the departed. The colorful skies weren’t a signal of suffering but quite caused by blood that ran when the spirits played ball or went horseback taking in the afterworld.

Nowadays the more academic explanation is that auroras form when solar winds hit the Earth’s atmosphere at the height of 100 km.

In north Finland, north of the Arctic Circle, auroras may be accessible on clear nights up to two hundred times a year. The chance of seeing the lights grows the further north you go. In Kilpisjärvi and Utsjoki auroras are seen three out of 4 nights during wintertime. Even in Helsinki, the Northern Lights can be caught as many as 20 times a year, in areas away from city lights.

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