5 Misunderstood Facts About The Northern Lights - Do The Northern Lights Make A Sound?

Let's separate myths from facts. Here are 5 misunderstood facts about the northern lights AKA the Aurora. The most popular question on this topic, Do the Northern Lights Make a Sound?

There's a plethora of cultural myths surrounding the Northern Lights but in this video, we explore some of currently popular held beliefs about the Northern Lights and break down fact from fiction.

Chapters:
0:00 - Intro
0:31 Number 1: Northern Lights Can Only Be Seen When It's Cold
1:15 Number 2: Northern Lights are Only Visible In Midwinter
2:03 Number 3: Northern Lights are Limited to Only a Few Years Each Decade
4:03 Number 4: You Can't See The Northern Lights When The Moon is Full
4:40 Number 5: Do the Northern Lights Make a Sound?
8:32 Bonus Fact: The Northern & Southern Lights are the Same
10:33 Additional Info

Links

Sources & Credits

Northern Lights sound

NASA Videos
Solar Max/Min: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center
NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio

#NorthernLights #Aurora #TheAuroraChasers

[TheAuroraChasers]

Thanks for checking out our video. If you enjoyed this one, you'll likely also enjoy the rest of our Northern Lights Explained series. Please like and subscribe if you feel compelled to do so. :-)

[crownprincesebastianjohano]

I grew up in North Pole, AK and saw the lights all the time. And my friends can attest to this, but on occasion on very cold, clear, windless nights, when it was a very strong aurora, one could hear them. Like a faint rustling, shimmer, crackle. But, this is the interesting thing: And my friends say the same thing, we were able to hear them much better when we were kids. It is rare when any of us can hear them now, even under the same conditions. But, it is well known to science that kids can hear frequencies that adults cannot. So who knows?

[brucetaylor]

I have heard them, years ago back in the 1970's when I was up north. After seeing this I now count myself as a very lucky guy. It's something I will never forget and I recommend anyone that can, should go and experience the Northern Lights. And even if you don't hear them, its still an amazing thing to behold.

[philliphampton]

They definitely make sound. I've heard it more than once.

[marthaduncan]

Hearing them is cool, but FEELING them is awesome.
It is a sound I can FEEL more than I can "hear."
The sky ripples like electrified water...just amazing.

[octobericewolf]

The aurora was out about ten or twenty minutes ago and there was no one but home awake in my whole neighborhood in Big Lake and it sounded like someone was walking in the snow, there were no people, no animals, nothing, my grandpa woke up and said yeah that’s the aurora for you

[AndreasViklundOfficial]

Having lived north of the Arctic Circle for all my life, I've been blessed with hundreds of beautiful aurora nights. I have never heard any sound, but that in itself doesn't mean anything (mostly since I have a significant hearing loss). However, I have discussed the topic with scientists that had a theory about people experiencing sounds that is not possible to record - in the same way that tinnitus is experienced as a sound but can not be recorded. Or sound experienced by bone conduction. That was an interesting idea for a non-scientist like me, and has made me even more curious about the lovely phenomenon.

And also: Beautiful videos! Auroras should be displayed in real-time, not in timelapse videos - just as you did here! You got a new subscriber. :)

[tessahansen]

This is a great video! I was born in Alaska and can validate everything he has said. I worked up on the North Slope in 2010 and the lights were out one night so we drove outside of the camp to where it was completely dark and they were amazing. They were dancing all over and I did hear them. It was probably more than -60 degrees and it wasn’t loud by any means but there was sound. It was an incredible experience. Anyway thank you for sharing!

[ashentrena]

I was convinced that the whole "auroras make sound" thing was a myth, especially after I saw them many times, in Sweden, in Iceland, and in northern Norway.

But then once, I was in a very remote place of the very northern parts of Norway with a guide, and suddenly the auroras showed up. We were excitingly setting up the cameras and there was this weird, continuous sound, like a low soft humming, with a bit of crackling, and I turn to the guide asking "what's that sound?". I just thought that maybe we weren't in a place as remote as I had thought, maybe there's an electric something behind the hill?

He says calm and sure of himself "it's the aurora. That's what makes those sounds. It happens a lot, actually!"
I was so shocked 😆

[artbrown]

Nicely done 👍! I especially like the sound test 😉 with Marketa & the pan!

[kevinmoore]

Thank you for the video. I came to hear what you said about the sound of the Aurora. I am one of those who thinks he has heard it. Having said that, I am willing to accept that I am hearing something else that I am associating with the Aurora. I have been fortunate to have seen the Aurora many times especially when I lived in Saskatchewan. Summer and winter. Usually it is very quiet and an amazing site. One late fall, I was in northern Saskatchewan and went outside to look at the Aurora and I am sure I heard the "crackling" of them as they played across the sky. The issue of the speed of sound is a moot point with regards to hearing them in real time. That would only be the case if the Aurora was short lived. But if it is going on for 30 minutes or more then hearing a swirling crackling does not have to match up exactly with what you are seeing. It would be like trying to associate thunder with a very specific lightning bolt during a storm with many multiple lightning strikes. Having said all of this, I've only heard it once that I have a clear memory of. I have a faint memory of hearing it once in Newfoundland as well but won't verify that. Maybe I'm not actually hearing the Aurora but I was hearing some type of sound, that wasn't there before or after the Aurora. And it seems to have a varying pattern, a wave, that matches the type of flow of the lights. So if it is not the actual Aurora then it is still an interesting acoustic effect that happens during an Aurora and it would be good to know what it is like. Thanks again for the video.

[orglarovin]

Again a VERY good and balanced vid about the northern lights.. And yes.. 1992 I witnessed a particularly strong aurora with lots of red.. and we heard the fsint crackling.. like slowly ripping a piece of paper across the sky...

[deemisquadis]

I have heard them chiming. They sound so nice.

[jackien]

I live in Canada and see the northern lights a lot. When u see them, just enjoy them, they’re beautiful ☺️

[maureengildea]

I was fortunate enough to see them once and it was the noise that made me look up. It's amazing that some can't hear them as it was pretty difficult not too hear the crackling and whirling.. The most magicical thing I've ever witnessed.

[DanuteP]

Awesome. Thanks once again for doing these videos, they are great for folks who are new to Aurora and those of us who have lived in an Aurora zone for decades. I appreciate your tactful approach to the Aurora making sounds. I have lived in Alaska for over 40 years and I think I have only heard the Aurora once. It might not have been the Aurora but a electromagnetic reaction that my body had to the electrical charges in the air so, who knows, we'll have to wait to see what future research shows. All I can say about that night I thought I heard them was that it was a strong show, it was a calm night in the dead of winter with no wind, and I was far away from any large (or small) town.

[montybrown]

Have heard the buzzing sound on Leech Lake in the 70’s and in Ontario shield in 90’s several times

[BlinkinFirefly]

Interesting stuff! I definitely learned some new things about the aurora here. Thanks!

[sandovalsmexicanfood]

Looking forward to seeing you guys soon,

[eafnamaste]

I loved this video. Thank you for the information.