This description of the
Aurora borealis was given by
Carl Weyprecht*, leader of an Austro-Hungarian expedition to
Franz-Joseph Land (located to the north of Russia, at
latitude 80N,
longitude 55E) in the 1870s:
Total silence reigns in the endless icy polar regions. Nature is silenced by the cold. On the southern horizon however, there is a faint light visible—an arc of Northern light. Slowly the arc gets brighter as it gradually climbs higher and higher in the sky. The form of the Northern light is stable and its colour is uniformly green. The arc stays quiet and calm as it rises further toward the zenith. Suddenly another, just as regular an arc, appears on the southern horizon and soon after this, several new arcs. In a moment there are seven arcs in the sky, all moving toward the north.
Suddenly a band forms, showing much brighter light than the arcs. Its movements are rapid. As in ever-changing play, the band varies both in form and in colour. Small light waves travel uninterruptedly from west to east. All this happens simultaneously, as the band itself undulates and winds itself into a spiral as if it is a mysterious magic curtain in the sky.
The light intensifies and the movements become more and more rapid. The upper and lower edges of the band show colours of the rainbow, especially different hues of red. As the band once more approaches the zenith, it suddenly breaks into a vast bunch of long rays. These all originate from one point. We are offered a magnificent display, straight from the focus. The light waves dance as if coupled around this one single point. This fantastic corona of Northern light disappears for a short while—just in order to reappear once more in different colours. The rays now dance up and dance down, faster and faster. The whole sky is just one wavy and stormy sea of violent flames. The entire icy view is lit and strong illumination creates fantastic shadows on the ground. Then, unexpectedly, this all vanishes unbelievably fast. The Northern lights are an imposing fireworks display—incomprehensible in their scale, even for the most vivid imagination. No paint, no brush and no word can truly describe their glory.
There's a serious scientific write-up of the aurora—both terrestrial and extra-terrestrial—on the aurora node.
*Weyprecht died on 29 March 1881. This text is thus in the public domain. See http://members.chello.at/friedrich.morawetz/Seite_36x.html for more information (auf deutsch)