Sunset colours

On clear and chilly Monday evening I was walking out on company parking place, half an hour after sunset. In the opposite side of sun, earth shadow and belt of Venus were rising above horizon. The sky was strangely colored around sun, in a large area.

Light pink hue was easily visible. Normally during sunset sky turns first to orange and then red, even deep red. I remembered that earlier this year there was a volcanic eruption at Mount Kasatochi, located at Aleutian islands.

I assume this event could cause the colors, but I sill am not 100% sure... During the autumn reports of such colorful sunsets are received from Sweden. Many reports also have been coming from central Europe.

Before this eruption (if I correctly remember) was the famous mount Pinatubo eruption. Huge amount of aerosols and small dust particles were blown into upper atmosphere.

Trip to Kilpisjärvi

During mid-september 2008 I had a nature photography trip to northern Finland, i.e. Kilpisjärvi. In addition to landscape and nature details photographs, I captured some images of atmospheric phenomenon. I am again waiting the next opportunity to get there with my camera, so beautiful the landscape is there when the lightning conditions are good...

Auroras above lake Kilpisjärvi.

Sunpillar above lake Kilpisjärvi.

Misty morning and fogbow.

Swans and nightsky

Yesterday it was a clear sky on the evening already, later on at 11pm I went out to take a photo of Pleiades - M45. My Purpose was to get it composed with part of the public building. I need to try photographing again, since I was now too late. Position of Pleiades was not suitable.

When returning home, I got a really nice "surprise", so to speak... Aircrafts are flying quite a frequently in this area (i.e. Espoo) - so I understood there was another jet flying on the sky. First impression was wrong, oh boy! The "plane" was moving too fast - to be normal one. It was a migrating swan, against the thousands of stars on the nightsky. Below the swan there was a lit public building, a local church (mormonikirkko). Those very powerful and narrow light beams hit the swan from below and made it almost glow magically in the night... The situation was passed away so quickly, but damn it was so beautiful sight! I was happy to return home (although I was a bit suffering from cold weather).