Wednesday, December 09, 2009

From Behind The Mountain

clipped from www.popsci.com

A Russian missile test or a meteor remain the top guesses for a strange spiraling light phenomenon
Strange Norwegian Lights: Rocket gone awry, or the something scarier?  Rex Features/Daily Mail
A bizarre spiraling light show over Norway has raised speculations ranging from a Russian rocket test to an odd meteoric display. The Norwegian Meteorological Institute remains unsure of the phenomenon's origins, but astronomers have said that it does not appear connected to the Aurora Borealis, also known as the Northern Lights.

A blue light first appeared from behind a mountain, and created a giant spiral in the sky within seconds. Perhaps even more baffling, a green-blue beam of light appeared to shoot from the center. The entire display remained in the sky for a good ten to twelve minutes--enough time for photographers across Norway to shoot hundreds of images and capture video:

UPDATE: See this post. Turns out EISCAT didn't do it.