It was nighttime. The sky was lit up with shades of green and red that glowed, casting shapes onto a pyramid of stones.
Snow covered the ground in Raufarhöfn, and the sky put on a colorful display caused by a geomagnetic storm. Chilean astrophotographer Cari Letelier was observing this phenomenon from the only place in Iceland where the skies were clear that night.
He stood in front of the Arctic Henge. He looked up and recognized a figure. He framed the shot. He focused and took the picture.
Her photograph went viral around the world. She was nominated for the 2024 Astronomy Photographer of the Year award, organized by the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, London, among 31 photographers from around the world.
Cari had captured a unique image that combined a natural spectacle with imagination: she photographed a dragon made of the Northern Lights.
Sources: Forbes and La Tercera
