Hunting The Great Alaskan Aurora

By Ben Hattenbach and Henry Throop
It is the middle of winter and you are in the middle of Alaska.  You have traveled 100 miles into the wilderness on a road of ice, and are now squarely within a habitat patrolled by bears and wolves.  The sun has set, the moon is away, and you are trapped in inky darkness.  With no clouds to retain the heat of the day, the temperature quickly plummets below -30 o F (-34 o C).  The stage is set for a perfect vacation.  Perfect vacation?  If you were looking for a lounge chair and fruity drinks with little umbrellas, this probably sounds like a nightmare.  But if, like me, you wanted to photograph one of the world's most impressive displays of the Aurora Borealis – literallytheluminous landscape – you would be hard-pressed to find a more appealing scenario.
Twelve Mile Summit In Winter Nikon D700, 14mm, 20 s at f 2.8 and ISO 800
For those interested in embarking on a similar adventure, below I offer some suggestions based on my nine chilly nights in th...