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NAMING
AURORAS

In Arctic Europe, the aurora season lasts from late August until the end of April. During this time, we might see well over 100 auroras.

The northern lights come in different colours and shapes. Some are very delicate, but still awe-inspiring, and some stronger, so strong in fact, that we decided to start giving them Nordic names.

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CURRENT
FORECAST

Sep 11 - Sep 13
The northern lights seen in the night sky of Arctic Europe during this time are called

Harri

STORY OF THE NAME

Descending from the name Harold, Harri originally meant ‘home ruler’’. These auroras are named Harri after the aurora hunter Harri Tarvainen, proud owner of Kaffe (@kaffegram) the curly coated retriever.

Sep 23 - Sep 24
The northern lights seen in the night sky of Arctic Europe during this time are called

Magnus

STORY OF THE NAME

The name originates in Latin meaning “great”. It’s been a very popular name among kings in the Nordic countries. One of our aurora hunters is Magnus Winbjörk (aka @winbjorkphoto) and he deserves a name in the sky.

Sep 25 - Sep 27
The northern lights seen in the night sky of Arctic Europe during this time are called

Per

STORY OF THE NAME

Per, a variant of Peter, is a name in the Nordic countries. The origin of the name means ‘rock’ or ‘stone’. Per Lundström (aka @taigapic) took part in our aurora hunt and therefore this name is a natural way to honor his great effort.

Sep 27 - Sep 28
The northern lights seen in the night sky of Arctic Europe during this time are called

Steffen

STORY OF THE NAME

The name comes from the Greek word Stéphanos which means “crowned”. These auroras are called Steffen to honor one of our aurora hunters, Steffen Fossbakk aka @seffis.

Oct 17 - Oct 19
The northern lights seen in the night sky of Arctic Europe during this time are called

Freya

STORY OF THE NAME

The goddess of love, beauty and fertility was called Freya in Norse mythology. The original form of the name means ‘lady’.

Oct 27 - Oct 30
The northern lights seen in the night sky of Arctic Europe during this time are called

Sampo

STORY OF THE NAME

Sampo is the name of the miracle machine and magic mill in the Finnish national epic poem, Kalevala.

Oct 31 - Nov 1
The northern lights seen in the night sky of Arctic Europe during this time are called

Astrid

STORY OF THE NAME

Deriving from Old Norse for “god” and “beautiful”, the name Astrid was made famous by Swedish writer Astrid Lindgren, the author of Pippi Longstocking.

Nov 2 - Nov 4
The northern lights seen in the night sky of Arctic Europe during this time are called

Rauno

STORY OF THE NAME

Possibly deriving from Scandinavian word ‘raun’ meaning Rowan tree, Rauno is a Finnish male name. The name could also originate from Ragnar, consisting of Old Norse elements for “counsel” and “army”.

Nov 5 - Nov 7
The northern lights seen in the night sky of Arctic Europe during this time are called

Thor

STORY OF THE NAME

Thor, from the Old Norse for thunder, the god of strength, thunder, war and storms. He, the son of Odin, was armed with a hammer called Mjolnir.

Nov 9 - Nov 11
The northern lights seen in the night sky of Arctic Europe during this time are called

Lasse

STORY OF THE NAME

Lasse, a popular name in Sweden, is the northern version of the name Laurentius and also the nickname of Astrid Lindgren’s son Lars Lindgren.

Nov 13 - Nov 15
The northern lights seen in the night sky of Arctic Europe during this time are called

Liv

STORY OF THE NAME

Meaning ‘shelter’ and ‘protection’, Liv is a Nordic female name, which is also to be found in the names of Líf and Lífþrasir, who were two humans foretold to survive Ragnarök–the battle at the end of the world.

Nov 21 - Nov 23
The northern lights seen in the night sky of Arctic Europe during this time are called

Denise

STORY OF THE NAME

An exceptional woman, Denise, had a lifelong dream to see the northern lights with her family. 15 years ago she offered someone close to her a second chance by donating her kidney to them. On November 21, 2019 she passed away, but the dream of seeing auroras still remains within the family. In honour of Denise these auroras in the northern sky bear her name.

Nov 24 - Nov 26
The northern lights seen in the night sky of Arctic Europe during this time are called

Ilmari

STORY OF THE NAME

Derived from Finnish word ilma meaning “air”. Ilmari, the short form of Ilmarinen, was an immortal smith in Finnish mythology, the creator of the sky and the magic mill known as the Sampo.

Nov 27 - Nov 29
The northern lights seen in the night sky of Arctic Europe during this time are called

Anna

STORY OF THE NAME

Anna is one of the six children in Swedish author Astrid Lindgren’s ‘The Children of Noisy Village’ book. The name originates from the form of Channah used in the Greek and Latin Old Testament.

Nov 30 - Dec 2
The northern lights seen in the night sky of Arctic Europe during this time are called

Loki

STORY OF THE NAME

In Norse mythology, Loki was the name of a trickster god associated with magic and fire.

Dec 3 - Dec 5
The northern lights seen in the night sky of Arctic Europe during this time are called

Kyllikki

STORY OF THE NAME

The name Kyllikki comes from the Finnish word for “yes” and/or “enough”. In the Finnish national epic Kalevala it’s also the name of Lemminkäinen’s joyful wife, who likes to dance.

Dec 7 - Dec 9
The northern lights seen in the night sky of Arctic Europe during this time are called

Bosse

STORY OF THE NAME

Bosse is the affectionate form of Bo. In ‘The Children of Noisy Village’, a book by Swedish author Astrid Lindgren, Bosse is the older brother dreaming of traveling the world.

Dec 10 - Dec 12
The northern lights seen in the night sky of Arctic Europe during this time are called

Odin

STORY OF THE NAME

Odin is the supreme god and also the god of war, wisdom, poetry and death in Norse mythology. The name Odin means rage, inspiration and frenzy.

Dec 15 - Dec 17
The northern lights seen in the night sky of Arctic Europe during this time are called

Ukko

STORY OF THE NAME

Ukko is the supreme god in Finnish mythology. His mightiness was honoured but also scared.

Jan 20 - Jan 22
The northern lights seen in the night sky of Arctic Europe during this time are called

Ellen

STORY OF THE NAME

A very special Ellen from the west coast of Ireland enjoys sitting in her conservatory observing the stars and the planets across the night sky. She had her 100th birthday on December 22nd. These auroras in the Arctic sky are named after her. Happy 100th birthday Ellen!

Mar 1 - Mar 3
The northern lights seen in the night sky of Arctic Europe during this time are called

Summit

STORY OF THE NAME

A loving Labrador retriever, Summit, has brought a great amount of happiness and joy to her owner in tough moments in life. In honor of his spirit full of light, Summit, deserves auroras named after him.

Mar 4 - Mar 6
The northern lights seen in the night sky of Arctic Europe during this time are called

Saga

STORY OF THE NAME

The goddess of poetry, storytelling and history in Norse mythology is called Saga who had the ability to predict the future.

Jan 1
The northern lights seen in the night sky of Arctic Europe during this time are called

Ilmatar

STORY OF THE NAME

The Semi-androgynous goddess of the heavens in Finnish mythology is called Ilmatar. In Kalevala, The Finnish national epic poem, Ilmatar is described as the virgin spirit of the air.

BROWSE ARCHIVE

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Aurora Hunting

Take a look at what it’s like to be on an Aurora hunter.

READ MORE

Things to do

In addition, Arctic Europe has a lot to experience and do in autumn.

READ MORE

NAMING AURORAS

Northern lights are never the same. Every light show in the sky has its own identity. They shine, they dance, they change colours and they might disappear as quickly as they shown up. We wanted to create a way to make a deeper connection to the experience.

The sky in Arctic Europe is lit with aurora from autumn to spring. This page is created for visitors, photographers and people to share their interest in the natural phenomenon that is visible in Northern Norway, Sweden and Finland. Auroras are given a name when a strong geomagnetic storm occurs. The northern lights are the result of these storms, once the particles reach the Earth’s magnetic field.

You can check the current name of the aurora, or you can explore past aurora shows and In case you’ve witnessed them yourself, feel free to add the hashtag from the day you experienced this magic in Arctic Europe!

Read more about:
AURORA HUNTING

About the forecast

The current aurora forecast is based on the data provided by SWPC (Space Weather Prediction Center). The K-index quantifies disturbances in the horizontal component of the earth’s magnetic field with an integer in the range 0–9 with 1 being calm and 5 or more indicating a geomagnetic storm.

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