The Northern Lights seem to be a made up fairy tale that people only hear about in songs or movies. They are typically seen in places further north on the globe such as Norway, Sweden, Finland, Iceland, and Canada. However, it is a rare sight to see when they appear in the states, let alone Nebraska.
The Northern Lights appeared in the sky over Nebraska and other places further south Nov. 11th, 2025. They are a display of natural lights caused by particles from the sun interacting with gases in the Earth’s atmosphere near the poles. Reds, greens, purples, and pinks vibrantly emerge from the sky when this phenomenon takes place.
Many students and staff at Elkhorn High took it upon themselves to explore this rare occasion. Although some could see the lights with their naked eye peering into the sky, it was far easier to snap a picture and see the burst of colors appear on the screen.
“I went outside and I saw the pink streak,” junior Madolyn Jackson said. “I could not tell it was there until I took a picture of it with high saturation and then you could really see all the colors.”
It is much easier to see the Northern Lights when there are no lights around and it is just an open piece of land with minimal light pollution. Most people in the Omaha metro were thinking the same thing considering the many cars were parked alongside rural country roads.
“I went somewhere around Waterloo, where there was not a lot of light pollution,” Jackson said. “There were actually a lot of people parked on the side of the road doing the same thing as us.”
The most interesting part of this is that one did not have to put in a lot of effort in order to see the Northern Lights. For instance, staying home and looking out the backyard or the front porch did the job as well.
“I was able to see them from the front of my house,” sophomore Evelyn Dorenkamp said. “I just went to my driveway and was able to see them.”
Getting the chance to experience the Northern Lights is something not everyone can say they have witnessed, so it is safe to say that November 11th, in Nebraska was a night to remember.
“They are really pretty,” Dorenkamp said. “Definitely not something we usually see in Nebraska so it was really cool.”