APOD: Creature Aurora Over Norway (2013 Nov 06)

[APOD Robot]

Creature Aurora Over Norway

Explanation: It was Halloween and the sky looked like a creature. Exactly which creature, the astrophotographer was unsure (but possibly you can suggest one). Exactly what caused the eerie apparition was sure: one of the best auroral displays in recent memory. This spectacular aurora had an unusually high degree of detail. Pictured above, the vivid green and purple auroral colors are caused by high atmospheric oxygen and nitrogen reacting to a burst of incoming electrons. Birch trees in Tromsø, Norway formed an also eerie foreground. Many other photogenic auroras have been triggered by recent energetic flares on the Sun.

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[olympusmons]

a wolf lying down, its back on the mountain, alert, looking out into the galaxy. or perhaps a snail's foot.

[new1]

cobra

[alter-ego]

I see a fire-breathing dragon in flight to the left. It seems appropriate to only have it's heart smack dab in the great square of Pegasus.

[Nitpicker]

Looks like a troll ... or is that click-bait?

Edit: but lovely picture.

[Uwe]

Click-bait is rather good ^^, but to me it shows a jumping salmon at a waterfall. You can clearly detect some kind of dorsal fin at the right.
Anyway, Thanks again for the beautiful picture!

[wisbech10@yahoo.com]

Reminds me of the Lord Voldemort attack on the Quidditch World Cup encampment in the Harry Potter books.

[phedre]

It looks like a magnetospheric eel

[BMAONE23]

While it does resemble Moldywarts Dark Mark
I see a rather large swan

[Mikey]

Wings are spread, the neck arches high...

"The Phoenix Rises"

[Obi-don]

Maybe it's because I'm a single guy, but I see the top half of a nekkid lady, the center of the image being her head turned towards the camera.

[Milky Waster]

It's a sky fossil of an aurorasaurus. These flying lizards had wings which were sensitive to approaching comets and they took to the skies about 65 million years ago rarely to be seen again.

[GavinW]

Definitely a Snark of the Boojum variety.

[slywlf]

Wings are spread, the neck arches high...

"The Phoenix Rises"

My thought exactly!!!

[Rikk]

Super pic but aren't the colours formed from oxygen and nitrogen?

[mister T]

Cecil the Sea Serpent

[Boomer12k]

Riddle me this....Batman....what would today's APOD remind you of, if it was turned 180 degrees?????

"Holy Question mark, Batman!"

"Correct Robin, this can mean only one thing....The Riddler is out to steal the Aurora Borealis....THE FIEND!!! To the Batmobile!!!!"


Doo doo doo doo doo doo.....

:---[===] *

[Mumbotron]

I bet you'll like this one... a Phoenix. Or you could go with Quetzalcoatl if you are into that kinda stuff.

[skywriter]

While it does resemble Moldywarts Dark Mark
I see a rather large swan

Wings are spread, the neck arches high...
"The Phoenix Rises"

Is'nt it a swan like this?:

[me@alexjmoore.com]

This must be an Aukrora

[neufer]

[egenpaliari]

Why it is the Nocte Norse Monster, of course.

[FloridaMike]

I see Ions...

[copernicus9]

I see a sailfish jumping out of the water

[Imagineer]

Setting aside discussion of the apparition evoked by today’s amazing aurora image for a moment, I’m intrigued by the “small vertical tail” appearing at the left inner edge of the crescent, just left of image center. May I assume the image captures a dense sheet of incoming electrons more or less edge-on?