Aurora - Alaska late in the season

[mek]

 Has anyone had a good experience viewing the Aurora mid- late September?  We are on the Sept 13th Grand sailing and have never been to Alaska this late. This is the 10 night RT from San Francisco, so we won't be as far north as Anchorage.  Keeping fingers crossed that we just might get lucky. 

[Coffeeluvr05]

We were on the same sailing last year (last one in September out of SF) and some did see the "lights."  It was in the middle of the night though so I was asleep.

[Coral]

I have friends who saw them on their mid-September cruise last year. Their pictures were pretty good.

[azbirdmom]

We missed them between Glacier Bay and Skagway toward the end of August last year.  We didn't stay up late enough and regretted it.  Here's the link to see the forecasts but you obviously need a clear sky to see them https://www.gi.alaska.edu/monitors/aurora-forecast

[Rusty10]

I’ve seen it may in Juneau around 2am. It didn’t fill the sky. More like rainbow of light. 

[mek]

18 hours ago, azbirdmom said:

We missed them between Glacier Bay and Skagway toward the end of August last year.  We didn't stay up late enough and regretted it.  Here's the link to see the forecasts but you obviously need a clear sky to see them https://www.gi.alaska.edu/monitors/aurora-forecast

Thanks for that link - interesting about the rotation of the sun impacting the activity - something I didn't know.

[mek]

21 hours ago, Coral said:

I have friends who saw them on their mid-September cruise last year. Their pictures were pretty good.

I wonder if Princess will call at night if there is activity?  I will have to ask when I board.

[Coral]

1 hour ago, mek said:

I wonder if Princess will call at night if there is activity?  I will have to ask when I board.

My friend was on Viking. My sister was on a Princess ship at the same time and I told her to tell the Passenger Services desk to call if they see them. She never heard from them but also didn't hear anything from others that they saw them.

[Sea Hag]

4 hours ago, mek said:

I wonder if Princess will call at night if there is activity?  I will have to ask when I board.

They told us to leave the tv on the Princess channel and they'd announce it if the aurora showed up. We did, aurora did, and Princess did. Middle of the night.

[neverbeenhere]

Stay up late, either you will see them or if you drink enough, you will claim you saw them. 🤪🍷🍷🍷

[mek]

13 hours ago, Sea Hag said:

They told us to leave the tv on the Princess channel and they'd announce it if the aurora showed up. We did, aurora did, and Princess did. Middle of the night.

Cool - thanks.  Middle of the night isn't a problem for me.

[Sea Hag]

7 minutes ago, mek said:

Cool - thanks.  Middle of the night isn't a problem for me.

To see the aurora, it wasn't a problem for us either. 😃

[laughing husky]

set yourself an alert on the link that was above.  It will tell you if there is enough solar activity to see them.  You need dark and solar activity.  Some of the best lights I have ever seen, and I have seen hundreds have been in early September.  They come and go...changing constantly.  Never alike.  but you need to stay up.  That said, unless there is a good display, the ships lights ruin the show. 

[nini]

In 2000, saw them on August 28th. It was not late. Most people were 

still up.

[mek]

I hope this happens - we have always gone to Alaska when it never really gets dark and we were above the Arctic Circle in Norway on the Summer Solstice.  It would really be a treat to see them.