An amazing light show Tuesday night as the aurora borealis danced in the night sky, prompting many across Canada to snap photos and video.
Photographer Dwayne Larson went to Birds Hill Provincial Park and captured the beauty of the northern lights with his camera.
"When you get a chance to see something this spectacular in nature, you just have to go see it,” said Larson.
He can thank a powerful solar flare on the sun for creating his subject matter - an event which hits earth with a burst of energy, causing air in the upper atmosphere to glow.
"It's a big show,” said Jennifer West, University of Manitoba astronomy instructor.
She snapped photos of the lights south of Winnipeg.
While you can commonly see the aurora borealis in northern Manitoba, West said the intensity of that solar flare pushed the northern lights farther south.
"When it's very active the oval extends farther south and Winnipeg happens to be in that path,” said West. “So it doesn't have to go too much farther before Winnipeg gets to see the show."
That show is best viewed outside city limits.
Scott Young at the Manitoba Museum said getting away from street lights will give you a much better view.
"You want to be able to look toward the north because Tuesday night the northern lights were basically an arc in the northern sky, so you want to have a clear view of the north," said Young.
The northern lights were visible in many provinces Tuesday and even dipped down as far south as the United States.
Dwayne Larson is happy he snapped photos of the aurora borealis when he did.
"You're never sure when you're going to get to see it,” said Larson.
West said we're coming off a peak of northern light activity. It usually happens in 11-year cycles, meaning it may not be as visible in the next few years.
The lights were expected to be visible again Wednesday night around Winnipeg.
They can be unpredictable. Experts suggest getting out before sunset so you don't miss them.
