The skies put on a spectacular show in 2024. With the sun experiencing a particularly active year, the aurora displays around the globe stunned in their colorful beauty.
The Northern Lights Photographer of the Year, presented by Capture the Atlas, honors not only the photographers who captured these aurora images but also their stories. Photographer Adrian Cormie was on the northern coast of California when a friend in Nepal texted “Get as far north as you can by sunset, it’s going down tonight!” The friend was referring to the incoming geomagnetic storm that was the strongest observed in two decades. Comrie hit the road and drove to Crater Lake National Park in Oregon, which was covered 7 feet of snow. That didn’t stop the intrepid photographer who had packed cold-weather gear and snowshoes. Comrie set his camera up on the lake’s South Rim and captured a vibrant shot of the celestial light show (seen below).
May 10, 2024, began like any other new moon cycle for me. I was shooting at one of my favorite spots along the Sonoma coastline. Around 2:30 a.m., I was surprised to feel my phone buzz with a notification, as my location had sporadic cell coverage. The alert was one I never expected—and will never forget! A fellow Sony Alpha photographer, who was in Nepal at the time, messaged me: “Get as far north as you can by sunset, it’s going down tonight!” A historic geomagnetic storm, possibly peaking at G5, was predicted.
I immediately drove home to grab my Atlas pack full of cold weather gear. My gut told me to head to Crater Lake National Park in Oregon. Shortly into the drive, I learned the CLNP Rim Road was completely closed due to 7 feet of recent snowfall. Fortunately, I was prepared for deep snow conditions and pressed on.
Confident and armed with snowshoes, I settled on a spot along the South Rim, east of the Crater Lake Lodge, which was closed due to the extreme snow levels. My image, “Carpe Diem,” reflects the magnificent display of geomagnetic energy that weekend, set against the iconic and unforgettable alpine landscape.
Credit: Adrian Cormie / Northern Lights Photographer of the Year Daniel Zafra Portill
“This year, as we reach the solar maximum of the current solar cycle, the Northern and Southern Lights have been more active than ever, illuminating skies in unexpected places where they’ve rarely—if ever—been photographed,” Capture the Atlas shared. “Some examples of these unique locations include images from Arizona, California, Spain, the Chilean Patagonia, Namibia, Madeira Island, and locations as far South as Tenerife at 28º North Latitude.”
Seeing the Northern Lights with such intensity in Asturias is a dream come true. I remember talking with friends years ago, saying, “All we’re missing are the auroras…” And that day finally arrived! I came across several alerts on social media along with notifications from a few mobile apps—all signs pointed to something big.
On the first night, I tried, but nothing appeared. The second night, however, the solar storm hit, and everything aligned perfectly. I was able to enjoy this incredible dream throughout the night, with an impressive intensity.
I must admit, I still haven’t witnessed one of those truly powerful auroras like in Iceland, but dreams are meant to be fulfilled—I’ll go see them there someday!
Credit: Edén Sánchez / Northern Lights Photographer of the Year Daniel Zafra Portill
The Rybachy Peninsula, where this photo was taken, is located at the northern edge of the Kola Peninsula. It’s a unique natural area, home to many fascinating locations with numerous stone beaches and rocks featuring unusual shapes and structures. I fell in love with this place during my first visit 10 years ago, and now, every year, I try to return and capture something new.
For this shot, I wanted to create a concept that emphasized the significance of the location, with the Northern Lights serving as a complement to the landscape. This time, the aurora was particularly powerful, casting a beautiful light over the stones. The photo is quite simple, composed of three main exposures: the first for capturing the sky, the second for the rest of the scene, and the third for focusing on the foreground.
Credit: Sergey Korolev / Northern Lights Photographer of the Year Daniel Zafra Portill
Everyone remembers that May night when the Northern Lights were visible across Europe and America. Unbelievably, I had the chance to witness them in Namibia, near the Tropic of Capricorn. Early in the night, the eastern sky was clear, where the Milky Way was set to rise. Seizing the opportunity, I prepared my gear for a 50mm panorama.
As I worked through the layout of the Milky Way’s core, I noticed a red spot on the horizon. Over the next few hours, it grew into a massive red explosion, illuminating much of the sky. The glow persisted throughout the night as the Milky Way shifted westward, forming a morning arch. The southern sky glowed red and orange, with the Milky Way rising through the vibrant hues.
Credit: Egor Goryachev / Northern Lights Photographer of the Year Daniel Zafra Portill
The Milky Way arches over the dramatic landscape of Aoraki Mount Cook National Park, captured during a rare G5 geomagnetic storm in May 2024. This aurora display was one of the most breathtaking sights I’ve ever witnessed—a magical evening watching the lights dance across the crystal-clear sky. The excitement was shared by everyone under the stars, as this aurora was potentially the strongest in a century.
The image features a rare SAR (Stable Auroral Red) arc, an atmospheric phenomenon that added to the spectacle, alongside the glow of billions of stars in the Milky Way. Capturing this moment was technically challenging, but it resulted in one of the most unique depictions of the aurora from New Zealand. This photograph is not just an image but a treasured memory of an extraordinary and ethereal night.
Credit: Tom Rae / Northern Lights Photographer of the Year Daniel Zafra Portill
On the night of the Perseid meteor shower, I was treated to a “multi-course menu” of the night sky. I captured the Milky Way arch with Orion, the Aurora (a first for me), the Zodiacal light, and the Perseid meteors. As if that wasn’t enough, the sky gifted me with one of the most stunning greenish airglows I’ve ever seen. Oh, and I almost forgot to mention the close conjunction of Jupiter and Mars, right along the path of the Zodiacal light.
In the center of the panorama is the Cap Marlera lighthouse, built in 1880 at the southeastern tip of the Istrian Peninsula. The rugged coastline, at the entrance to Kvarner, attracts fish and dolphins. This area is also home to the Mediterranean bear, though I didn’t have the pleasure of meeting one.
Meteors rained down throughout the night, and I captured 75 of them using three cameras. I used the RegiStar software to seamlessly insert the meteors to the panorama in the exactly same spots as they appeared in the sky this night.
It was an extraordinary, perhaps once-in-a-lifetime event, and I’m grateful and happy to have been part of it.
Credit: Uroš Fink / Northern Lights Photographer of the Year Daniel Zafra Portill
I’m not sure if an aurora had ever been recorded in Patagonia before, but we got incredibly lucky on the night of May 10, 2024, when a G5 storm hit. We were camped on an iceberg beach, deep in the wilderness of the Patagonia Fjords, when the incredible display unfolded.
Credit: Marc Adamus / Northern Lights Photographer of the Year Daniel Zafra Portill
I’ve dreamed of capturing this shot for years, and this year, everything aligned perfectly! During my annual Iceland workshop, our group witnessed the sheer power of nature as Iceland’s most recent active volcano erupted just days before.
After spending hours shooting and soaking in the incredible scene, we started to wrap up and head back to the car. Then, to our amazement, the Northern Lights began dancing across the sky! I quickly launched the drone, sending it on a mission to capture this wild spectacle.
Navigating through the wind, heat, and low visibility surrounding the volcano, I managed to capture a vertical panorama just as the volcanic smoke and ash shifted to the side. Moments later, the dreaded battery warning sounded, and I began the tense journey back. By this point, the wind had really picked up, and I honestly thought the drone was a goner… but with only 1% battery left, it somehow limped back to safety!
Credit: Josh Beames / Northern Lights Photographer of the Year Daniel Zafra Portill
May 10, 2024: Aurora forecasts promised an incredible display, so I drove to Devils Tower, Wyoming, to witness the event. The solar storm delivered, reaching a historic KP9, with auroras visible worldwide. As the vibrant lights danced overhead, my father was undergoing emergency surgery two thousand miles away in Maine. It was a surreal night—awed by the celestial beauty above, yet grappling with worry for my dad.
The aurora offered a strange sense of comfort amidst the turmoil, grounding me in the moment as I captured this incredible phenomenon. My father, a photographer for over 50 years and the person who introduced me to this art, thankfully survived surgery and recovered after several days in the ICU. Although he missed this display, six months later, on October 10, we shared an even stronger solar storm together as a family—a memory I’ll always treasure.
Credit: Forest Barkdoll-Weil / Northern Lights Photographer of the Year Daniel Zafra Portill
In the early hours of the morning, Lake Toolondo was transformed into a light show. A massive solar storm illuminated the sky with bursts of red, orange, and pink, dancing above the still waters. The colors reflected off the lake, creating an almost mirror-like effect that felt surreal to witness.
The dead trees along the shoreline stood silhouetted against the night sky as the aurora rippled and shimmered, turning the entire scene into something out of a dream. It was one of those moments that felt like pure magic. I spent the rest of the night at the location, capturing several images and a timelapse until dawn broke.
Credit: Baillie Farley / Northern Lights Photographer of the Year Daniel Zafra Portill
Win the Holidays with PopSci’s Gift Guides
