Solar Storms and Midnight Magic - A Winter's Journey to the Northern Lights

During the winter season, the "Northern Lights," the Aurora Borealis, flicker on the Arctic horizon. This fascinating phenomenon, which has captivated the people in Europe's far north since time immemorial, is caused by energy from solar storms. The indigenous population, the Sami, believe them to be a bad omen and speak very quietly when they're visible in the sky. To this day, the Sami hold on to the custom of only talking about the northern lights when they are no longer visible. But quite a lot of things have changed in Lapland in Sweden. The American Chad Blakely arrived in Abisko, a small town near the border with Norway, a few years ago. By chance he discovered that the people from more southerly regions of the Earth were downright addicted to the bizarre light phenomena. Since then he's been running photo courses for the tourists who now come to Abisko in their thousands every year. They aren't put off by temperatures of - 30°C and hope they'll be able to experience the Aurora Borealis themselves. Abisko is now considered the Mecca of northern-lights tourism. The lights are said to bring good luck to young couples wanting children and single travellers in search of a partner. However, the Northern Lights boom is also a threat to Lapland's unique natural environment. Scientists are studying the northern lights for other reasons. They're hoping to gain insight into the causes of the storms on the sun, which have a big impact on Earth.