NASA ambassador to make Tofield base for aurora sightings
Tofield and its surrounding areas are the stomping grounds for Edmonton photographer Hugo Sanchez, who is a NASA ambassador for their program Aurorasaurus.
“I try to use Tofield for better aurora shows since they have beautiful dark skies and also an amazing display of stars,” Sanchez said. “Depending on the time of the year, the Milky Way is a breathtaking sight, and is a great place to see full moon rising at the horizon!”
Aurorasaurus founder Liz Macdonald had made a recent visit to Calgary and connected with many Alberta aurora chasers while giving a colloquium at the University of Calgary Physics and Astronomy Department. It was after this besides subsequent interactions with Sanchez that led him to be invited to be an ambassador.
Excited about this opportunity, he said, “My love and hard work on northern lights is paying off, and it was only last week that I was invited to be an ambassador and join the group.”
As an Aurorasaurus ambassador, photographers are required to spot the aurora and report it. Their reports will help others see it too. Volunteers use the website, iOS, or Android apps to get alerts, help find real-time sightings from social media and learn about aurora.
“Tofield is definitely a great place to photograph aurora, besides migrating birds, owls, and stars. I usually go and capture the Milky Way and I wait for the aurora to show up in the sky . . . contd.
