About yesterday 🌌✨ #reykjavik

A photo posted by belakarsai (@belakarsai) on

Living in Reykjavik, the northernmost capital in the world, has its perks, including, of course, the Northern Lights, also known as aurora borealis

And last night, to better take in the show, officials shut off the city’s street lights, making it darker on the ground but more visible in the sky. Safety, for the moment, would have to take a backseat to natural beauty. 

 

A photo posted by Daði Guðjónsson (@dadigud) on

The Northern Lights are a natural phenomenon seen at the northern and southern reaches of the Earth, created when charged particles emitted from the Sun disturb Earth’s magnetosphere, depositing other charged particles closer into Earth’s outer atmosphere. As Icelanders well know, what happens next is a dazzling show.

The street lamps were out for just an hour, from 10 p.m. to 11 p.m., according to the Iceland Monitor, but that was more than enough time for many a resident to snap a shot for Instagram. 

 

A photo posted by Adam Thor Murtomaa (@adammurtomaa) on