For the past several months, friends worldwide have been posting pictures of brilliant displays of the Northern Lights. A couple of factors have come together to yield these photographs. First, there has been a peak this winter in aurora activity caused by a season of solar storms. Secondly, sophisticated cameras in cell phones have meant that nearly everyone has a camera with them wherever they go. It doesn’t hurt that cameras record a slightly different light spectrum than the human eye. Many dramatic photos came from less stunning experiences to the naked eye.

We should have frequent opportunities to view the aurora, but this winter has not offered as many opportunities for us as some other winters. We are challenged by living in the moistest climate of our lives. The skies are cloudy more often here than in any place we have lived. We see less of the night sky because it is usually blanketed in layers of clouds. Another challenge for us when viewing the night sky is that we live only 40 miles from Canada’s third-largest city and only 10 miles from its brightly lit exurbs. There is a lot of light pollution in our north sky. On the occasions when we have clear skies, viewing the stars and planets is easier when looking south than north from this place.

For some people, interest in the night sky is sparked or renewed by a daytime experience. The April 2024 total solar eclipse path was such that a large percentage of the United States population could witness the event. I know how powerful and spiritual an experience of total eclipse is. Although we live west of the path of the 2024 event and only saw a partial eclipse from our point of view, we did experience a total eclipse in 2017 when we traveled a ways south of our home in South Dakota to a place of totality in Nebraska where we had an unobstructed view of the event. The change in the light, the feel of the chill, the appearance of Baily’s Beads just before totality, and the reaction of animals, including the rooster near our viewing place, were all-powerful. Since the sun is completely obscured by the moon passing between it and the earth, there is an experience of sunset and sunrise with a short time of darkness between.

The travel site booking.com has coined the name “noctourism” for the top travel trend of 2025. They surveyed more than 27,000 travelers and found that two-thirds have considered traveling to destinations with darker skies than their home location. Tours have been offered for activities as simple as visiting a place with clear skies and low light pollution to lie down and look up at the night sky. Some involve travel to exotic locations such as the Altacama region in Chile, the driest nonpolar desert on Earth. It has been known by professional astronomers for a long time and now is attracting more casual observers with its clear night skies. Other travelers have chosen to travel to festivals with lots of bright lights at night, such as the annual Up Helly Aa festival in the Shetland Islands of Scotland or a visit to the night markets in Taiwan. Travel planners also offer night safaris in Africa and views of the Northern Lights from hot springs in Iceland.

I’ve not yet been attracted by a need to travel to experience the night. I learned to rise before sunrise as a child, and as an adult, I’ve not been the best sleeper. I usually write my journal entries in the middle of the night, sandwiched between two sleeping periods in my bed. Before my retirement, I often was on call to respond to emergencies in the middle of the night. I am used to being awake and alert when others are sleeping. One of the surprises for me when I am awake in the wee hours is that I am not alone. I used to drive into Rapid City to respond to a call for a need at the hospital or the scene of a sudden death and be amazed at how many other cars there were on the roads. I wondered where all of these people were going. Here, I have a neighbor directly across the street from my study window who has a long commute to where he works on a ferry. He often departs for work while many of our other neighbors are sleeping. A mile and a half from our home is a refinery that operates 24/7 and is always brightly lit at night.

I learned to let my eyes adjust to the dark as a child. While some friends and siblings reached for a flashlight when venturing at night, I preferred not to use a light. I discovered that using light only allows you to see a narrow field of vision where the light is cast. Without a light, your pupils dilate, and you can see much more. If one learns not to use a light, there are fewer surprises when walking in the woods at night.

The researchers at Booking.com were uninterested in me. They were trying to assess the market and anticipate trends. I have no desire to pay to book a trip when I can experience it for free at home. Despite being surrounded by bright night lights and living in a place with frequently cloudy skies, I have plenty of opportunities to see the wonders of the night sky. I can go out my front or back door and look up to see planets and familiar constellations. When I cannot see the moon because of the clouds, I can be aware of its phases by observing the tide in the bay.

It is good that I find joy at night because here, near the 49th parallel, we are in our season of long nights and short days. Here, we exchange our gloriously long summer days for very long winter nights, and it doesn’t seem like a bad trade.