Captured. Photo: Fred Mustica.
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It all began with some lively weather on a burning ball of gas 150 million km away.
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In the early hours of Friday morning, October 11, avid sky watchers across Cobram and surrounds were treated to an aurora australis.
Eyewitnesses report the aurora visible to the naked eye between 5.30am and sunrise.
Local Cobram man and 2023 Town Citizen of the Year Fred Mustica recorded some of the action on his Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra.
“It was awesome. With a naked eye you could see the white and pink beams moving across the sky,” he said.
While observing the aurora from the front porch of his Cobram home, Mr Mustica said he heard a sharp report before what sounded like several car alarms around 5.44am.
“It was like a buzz, and then a bit of a pop. And then my front lights came on and off,” he said.
“Then a heap of alarm systems around town went off.”
Mr Mustica also recorded images of the May 11 aurora australis earlier this year, which he believed to be larger than the latest aurora.
The aurora australis from May 11 this year. Photo: Fred Mustica.
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The aurora australis was reportedly visible from Cobram and Barooga to Bondi Beach, New South Wales.
An aurora is caused by geomagnetic storms occurring on the surface of the Sun.
According to Professor of Space Physics at Lancaster University Jim Wild for The Conversation, these storms cause electromagnetic fluctuations at the surface of the Earth.
Mr Mustica used three apps to track this week’s aurora: Aurora, Aurora Alerts, and SpaceWeather.
Powercor has confirmed a power fluctuation was recorded in the Cobram district at 5.44am.
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