Episode Information

In the earth’s polar regions, a ghostly flicker and colourful glow often brightens the night sky. Whoever sees an aurora event will never forget this impressive experience. Finland’s Saami people, Alaska’s Inuit, Canada’s Native Americans and New Zealand’s Maori all have legends about the origins and meaning of this magic natural spectacle. These stories tell of spirits dancing in the sky, of a bright and better world where hunting game is abundant, of battling gods and celestial messages. This programme links such popular legends to the aurora’s physical effects on the natural world. It covers aurora research and the most recent scientific discoveries. Breathtaking time-lapse recordings of aurora events, lavish computer animations of the ‘space weather’ as well as scenes from the lives of indigenous peoples add up to a comprehensive portrait of the aurora, and shine a light on its influence on humans and the natural world.