For a VERY long time, people have claimed that they have sometimes heard a faint "whistle" or "hiss" occurring—in time—with motions of the aurora.  (And the eskimos of far northern Alaska claim that it used to not just crackle and hiss, but howl.) The only problem with this, is that the nearest approach the aurora can make to the ground is about 60 miles (100 km).  -So, science has no satisfactory explanation as to how the aurora could produce audible sounds on the surface—let alone ones that occur in concert with auroral motions.  (The speed of sound is about 550 miles per hour.)


   My response to this is: "So what? -Science can't explain a lot of things—among them (as far as I'm concerned) not one single response made by a person between the ages of 13 and 45 with two X-Chromosones.  (Ain't freedom of speech great? :) )" The evidence and testimony for auroral sounds is overwhelming—who cares if science hasn't caught up.  That (among other things) is its job.


   Accounts of auroral sounds abound, but there is one in particular that I would like to share with you: The account is one (second-hand) of Dr. Charles Deehr, of the Geophysical Institute.  He thought that he heard some strange sounds which seemed to be in time with a display, but there was a car driving down the hill, and a dog barking—so he couldn't be sure.  Later, he went out, and the presence of the sounds was unmistakeable.  There were all-green (not very energetic), but rapid motion (This fits in with my own theories of auroral sounds.), curtains visible.  He did not report a smell of ozone.


   Worth mentioning, is that Dr. Deehr always thought that auroral sounds were "bunk"—that is, until he heard them.  :) He says that the air has to be ABSOLUTELY STILL, and there has to be _NO_ NOISE—as the sounds are quite faint.  He also believes that they would be very hard to record—as they sound, to no small degree, like electical interference.  Also worth noting, is that auroral sounds are *EXTREMELY* rare.  Dr. Deehr stated that they were "a long time in coming—over twenty years."


   I found this later—here is a bit by Patricia B. Kellog, of National Geographic magazine.  (Sometimes—when I have time to think at all ( :P ), it just amazes me how many famous people I get to "rub shoulders with," every day.)



   Scientists need to be skeptics, but sometimes ordinary experiences can cause them to change their minds.  What follows is an account from Charles Deehr, a scientist who has spent decades in Alaska studying the aurora. "There have been a number of anecdotal observations of auroral sound.  There is a section on it in every book on the aurora, and there have been some scholarly investigations and reviews.  I never thought any of it was believable.

   Then on November 8, 1998, I happened to be outside in the Goldstream Valley when there was no wind, and only a couple of cars in the valley.  I heard some soft static sort of sound, which seemed to be associated with some fast-moving green-white rayed bands of light.  Unfortunately, there was background noise and I had to close my eyes to hear, so it was not a clear case of auroral sound.  Later that evening when I walked up the hill to feed the neighbor's dogs, I heard it again.  This time there were no cars in the valley, and it was clearer, but I still found it necessary to close my eyes to hear it well.  I'm a believer."



   And here are some links on auroral sound:


http://www.phys.ucalgary.ca/satellites/html/aur_sound.html



http://www-pw.physics.uiowa.edu/mcgreevy/



http://www.auroralchorus.com/


   So, don't just look up—listen.  Good hunting, my far and wide friends.  :)