By: Liz Pond
Posted: August 6, 2025
“The aurora borealis is a fickle phenomenon. A week can pass without a flicker…then bang! The Northern Lights come on like a celestial lava lamp.” - Nigel Tisdall (1)
We sat hopeful in our minivan bundled up in our warm gear. A gust of Icelandic arctic wind whipped around the open door, rocking the vehicle with a fierce howl to show off mother nature’s frozen strength. On this blustery Reykjavik night, our guide Makala set out to manage expectations. “We would be lucky to see a streak of green in the sky.” she said repeatedly.
My adult daughter had been dreaming of seeing the lights since she was in middle school and her excitement was contagious. We had come to Iceland with the sole purpose of seeing the Northern Lights which had become our obsession the last few years.
We waited to book the trip for the right conditions and then a surprise storm hit, covering the land of fire and ice in a blanket of grey. This tour had been cancelled three nights in a row because of low visibility and our time in Iceland was quickly coming to a close. Optimistically, we crossed our fingers that we would experience the elusive streak of green. We had come such a long way. We hoped, like all tourists who adventure to Iceland in the winter, to see something in the sky other than the wet grey and white over-stuffed clouds that kissed the horizon of crackling ice, snow and bitter cold. Realistically, we knew our chances were slim, but the burning possibility placed us in this van with like-minded strangers from around the globe.
After a long, glorious, nine hour day of seeing Iceland’s golden circle with its geyser, waterfall and national park, we were sleepy at 10PM when the Aurora Tour started. We had no time for dinner in the 30 minutes between drop off and pick up window, so we grabbed a snack and waited for the van at the meet-up spot. We were determined not to miss this, so we braved the weather outside far too long for our warm Arizona blood.
I dozed off a few times on the drive away from Reykjavik's city lights. Makala communicated safari-style with other tour drivers to share information about cloud cover, the brightness of the moon, and the cagey shifting lights that could appear or disappear faster than an illusionist with a top hat and rabbit.
We were on the move, getting in and out of the warm van as we chased the lights to multiple locations. Each time, we looked up with our naked eye and our phones encouraging that glimpse of green to appear. Two hours in, we were still willing the sky to perform and concerned someone may decide it was the curtain call for the tour. Like other guests, I was fighting to keep my heavy eyes open since it was after midnight, and so far we had seen nothing of substance. Would that auspicious smear of green across the sky elude us again tonight?
As we drove we learned the history and science behind the Northern Lights, also known as the Aurora Borealis, meaning light of dawn. It’s said that the term was first coined by Galileo in 1623 and is derived from ‘Aurora’, the goddess of dawn and ‘Boreas’, the northern wind personified. The lights appear when highly charged solar wind particles flowing from the sun collide with air molecules in the earth’s atmosphere transferring their energy into the light. These occur around polar regions where magnetic fields converge (2). The ionization gives the lights color: Usually green, but occasionally purple, red, pink, orange and blue.
The sun recently reached the solar maximum in the 11 year solar cycle making 2025 a particularly good year to spot the aurora. To increase your chances of seeing the lights they are best viewed away from light pollution in late September through early April. You can also check the Northern Lights forecast with its scale of 0-9 measuring how active the aurora is on any night. (3) Makala commented that everything is a best guess, and that no matter how much planning, the lights are unpredictable. They do a no-show in perfect conditions, and arrive unexpectedly when the chances are low.
Many members of the tour group were discouraged by now and opted to stay in the cozy van, but my daughter and I were determined to see the lights. We trudged in and out of the van in our over stuffed cocoon of clothing after the enthusiastic Makala. She had not given up and neither had we! Each time she set up her camera and instructed us not to use a flash with our phones.
The last stop was by the airport in an area close to unpredictable geothermal activity. It was a soupy black darkness outside the van with the headlights off. We had stopped five feet from a sign that said, “Danger Beyond this Point.” You could smell and see the sulfur steam as it mixed with the dark sky on the horizon creating an other-worldly atmosphere reminiscent of a scene in Star Wars.
Visibility was low in front of us. I was wondering how we were expected to see the lights with all this steam? I pictured a chilly Chewbacca with frosty fur stumbling confused from the steam behind the “do not enter” sign and crying with an uvular trill to be let into the warm van. My mind was doing anything to stay alert and in my sleepy stupor I was doubting Makala for a brief moment. The dream of seeing the Northern lights was our guiding star as we braved the chill and gagged as the wind pushed the moist sulfur cloud in our direction, leaving a slightly warm sensation on my cold exposed nose.
Before I could finish my skeptical thought the most amazing thing happened! The clouds in the sky cleared and to the naked eye there was a green light with a matching white luminescence swirling across the sky!
Makala quickly ushered us in front of her camera to get the shot and we encouraged the people on the bus to come out and see the art masterpiece forming in the heavens above. The emerald light was brushed across the canvass of the sky first in one direction, and then the other! We were in awe, when the most unexpected shift happened and the sky opened up directly overhead raining upon us a kaleidoscope of green, red, pink, white, and a smidge of yellow across what was previously murky black!
The geothermal steam was low and the lights dancing high across the sky. We pulled out our phones and looked again and we saw it bigger, brighter, and with the colors even more defined! This was far more than a static streak of green! It was in constant motion and took your breath away. Often the only way to see the lights is through your phone. On this very special night we saw everything with the naked eye!
We saw the glow on either side of the night sky teasing us and waving ethereal fingers toward the sliver of a moon. The magic of the Northern Lights pirouetted across the skyline, like the backdrop in a fairytale. Only this was real, positively-charged energy showering layers of colorful light on the dark, cold, icy Northern sky and volcanic earth below.
The lights showered us from far above revealing deeper colors, expanded lime yellows, burnt reds, and that glorious green! We thought it would be quick, but mother earth partnered with the solar sky to share an extraordinary magical show where each new entry humbled the last. Much like the final few spectacular explosions of a firework show, the finale was a crescendo of light humming across the sky. It revealed itself like the actors at the end of a Broadway show; one by one, moving across the stage, and finally with hands held together bowing to a vibration of applause, and fading into the framework of the sky stage as the curtains closed. The brilliance dissipated, leaving the familiar murky black in its place.
Although the lights are rooted in science, it is easy to see why their interpretation can be a religious, mysteriously ancient or divine experience. Witnessing the Aurora Borealis phenomena live is like watching God's hands reach from the sky and move as if conducting an orchestra. With every shift of his almighty hand, the swirls of light become visible across the horizon, leaving us with a perfect view of his glory and powerful all-accepting presence that manifests in a rainbow of light.This experience brought my daughter and I both to tears. I think about how lucky we are to witness this scientific phenomena that feels sacred or spiritual.
My tears of joy fell and became part of the snow on the ground. I was so incredibly grateful for this shared experience with my daughter. It was more than we expected. More beautifully brilliant, more alive, and in motion. It took up more space in the sky and in our hearts. Overwhelmed, our emotions mingled with knowing we had witnessed an extraordinary event, something so special that you know at the time it must be savored in the present and experienced fully. We felt gifted with an encounter that included an obligation to share, but we were left perplexed at how to share its qualities beyond color. The sky had opened up for us and commissioned us with our own personal painting. The lights appeared to swirl on into eternity creating this warped sense of space for those of us traveling in its path.
No wonder some people used to think of the Aurora Borealis as a portal to another world, dimension, or window into loved ones who have passed. We felt small in the grandness of the Aurora Borealis glow, yet connected to the infinite. If Reiki moves the energy around the body, then perhaps the northern lights move this same energy around the sky.
After an hour of switching gloves to keep one hand available for picture taking and the other warm, I notice cold seeping in from below my thick snow boot. I was wearing REI full winter socks so to feel this cold meant the temperature must have really dropped. I was not uncomfortable in these boots and socks, but I noticed the cold penetrating through the layers when I kept my feet still. Eventually, adrenaline gave way to exhaustion, and flickers of bitter cold. We lost track of time, taking picture after picture with no flash and slow speed. In this case the pictures did the experience justice. No filter was needed to capture these marvelous moments in time. Rather than a glimpse of green, we were gifted with a kaleidoscope of color that lasted over an hour! The stars aligned and we were witness to a once in a lifetime event.
I heard the drivers yelling excitedly back and forth on speaker sharing giddy comments with other tour guides like, “Did you see it?” “The sky exploded!” “It’s on fire tonight!”, “Best we have seen since October!”, “Better than that night before Christmas!””Did you see the red and yellow?” “ It was a color bomb!” Our group was overjoyed as well, sharing photos and stories of lights hunting. The night was charged and people were wide awake, and it was well after 1AM. Some giddy, others too cold to stay outside the van for long.
A lot of planning went into maximizing our chances to see the lights. There are so many things outside of our control. Bad weather, and reduced visibility. The full moon can interfere and cloud cover is an issue. The time of year matters, as does the amount of solar activity. Solar ranking and the KP Index measuring geomagnetic activity are all good indicators. (4) Still, at the end of the day, we just got lucky. The best guides in Iceland did not expect the light show we received that night. The lights seem to have a mind of their own and will not appear on cue. Instead, they usually reward those with patience. We were lucky and in the right place at the right time.
Iceland is a country of mystical creatures, stories and legends, myths and mystery. The dark nights of winter lend to tall tales and truth. The landscape often desolate leaves space for imagination. Vikings and trolls share the stage blurring the boundaries of history and reality. So when the lights emerge from the darkness and the clouds, it makes sense that they combine scientific reality with fantastical performance inspired by magical beings. There are so many mystical tales and myths from around the world about the Northern Lights. We will dive into these in our next travel blog!
Resources
(1) “Northern Lights:Lights at the end of the tundra”, Nigel Tisdall, The Telegraph, November 10, 2008
(2) discover-the-world.com
(3) GuidetoIceland.is “Northern Lights in Iceland- when & where to see the Aurora,” by Katrin Sif Einarsdottir
(4) perlan.is/aurora-forecast – Real time aurora forecast, KP index measures the strength of the geomagnetic activity., 5+ good indicator of activity that will produce lights.
Additional Resources
icelandia.com
www.theaurorazone.com
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