By TATSUO KANAI/ Staff Writer
October 11, 2024 at 17:43 JST
WAJIMA, Ishikawa Prefecture—Early risers in the northern Noto Peninsula before dawn on Oct. 11 marveled at the Northern Lights in the sky over the sea, a rare spectacle so far south.
An Asahi Shimbun reporter watched video footage of the aurora borealis on his camera monitor a few minutes after 2 a.m. at the Shiroyone Senmaida terraced rice paddies here.
The popular tourist attraction was hit hard by the New Year’s Day earthquake and the recent heavy rainfall.
In the dark early morning sky, the lower part of the horizon over the sea appeared to glow in red.
The reddish hue appeared to be flickering on the camera's screen while the continuous shooting mode was used.
The low-latitude aurora was a result of the massive solar flare explosion on the sun, which occurred on Oct. 9.
The phenomenon is observed occasionally when a massive geomagnetic storm caused by a solar storm occurs on the Earth.
Many auroras observed in the polar region are green but low-latitude ones carry a reddish tint.
Takuya Usami, a curator at the Mantenboshi observatory in the town of Noto in the prefecture, also took photos of the aurora on the grounds of the astronomical facility.
“Since low-light camera capabilities have improved, many photos shot from different locations are uploaded on social media,” Usami said. “Researchers are making better predictions, so aurora are becoming more familiar to the public. I hope people will also become interested in solar activities.”
Northern Lights spotted over Hokkaido after solar flares erupt
May 13, 2024
Powerful quake rocks western Japan on quiet New Year’s Day
January 1, 2024
Tokyo declares ‘red alert’ as it tallies 31,878 patients in a day
July 21, 2022
Kumamoto high school’s quest to get a fix on elusive mirage
September 16, 2024
Ishikawa sets up English labels for tourists on how to cross streets
August 23, 2023
Here is a collection of first-hand accounts by “hibakusha” atomic bomb survivors.
A peek through the music industry’s curtain at the producers who harnessed social media to help their idols go global.
Cooking experts, chefs and others involved in the field of food introduce their special recipes intertwined with their paths in life.
A series based on diplomatic documents declassified by Japan’s Foreign Ministry
A series about Japanese-Americans and their memories of World War II
The low-latitude Northern Lights are seen above the horizon over the Sea of Japan in Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, at 2:06 a.m. on Oct. 11. The land in front is the Shiroyone Senmaida terraced rice paddies. (Tatsuo Kanai)
