When flying in and out of Iceland make sure you get a window seat. You just might get a glimpse of the Holuhraun eruption in Bárðarbunga. In the picture above you see the Northern Lights and the glow from the volcanic eruption reflected in Jokulsarlon glacial lagoon. Read more

This is the first picture of Lovejoy seen from Iceland. Stargazing enthusias Jón Sigurðsson took it last night in Þingeyri. The comet can easily be seen through handheld binoculars, so imagine how well you’ll be able to explore it through our 9.25 inch semi-professional digital telescope.  Read more

For stargazers and Northern Lights hunters, January 2015 will be a very exciting month. Combining stargazing via powerful telescope with your Northern Lights hunt is sure to deliver a lot more memorable experience. Read on to see what’s up with the planets, meteor showers and deep sky phenomena in the coming month. Read more

Photographers love Iceland. It’s all about how the sunlight hits the earth at a perfectly photogenic angle. The dancing nightsky, erupting earth, vibrant contrasts and lovely locals don’t hurt I’m sure 😉 Read more

On tonights tour, while patiently waiting for the Northern Lights, we spent our time observing some 30 or more astronomical objects.

Among them Jupiter and it’s moons, visible late evenings in December. Jupiter is the brightest object in the sky and spectacular to view in a powerful telescope. Jupiter’s red storm was easily visible tonight. With it’s band of red, white and blue Jupiter looked a bit like the Pepsi logo to us 😉 Read more

Christmas in Iceland

Christmas in Iceland is in many ways similar to Christmas in the United States. Families get together, enjoy good food and exchange presents. It is Iceland’s longest holiday, everything is closed from noon on Christmas Eve until December 27.

One major difference between Christmas in Iceland and in the U.S. is that Icelanders celebrate on Christmas Eve. The family gets together in the evening and that is when presents are exchanged. During the following two days everyone goes to Christmas parties and meets with grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins and friends.

Christmas is taken very seriously in Iceland. The whole house is cleaned, everyone gets something new to wear, people buy the best food, decorate the house inside and out and bake hundreds of cookies. It is truly a feast of the senses. Read more

The Geminids are considered to be one of the more spectacular meteor showers during a year, with the possibility of sighting around 120 meteors per hour at its peak. The meteor shower can be seen most easily in the Northern Hemisphere in areas with dark skies, away from city lights. You will want to view these meteors during the earlier part of the night as a quarter moon will rise around midnight. You can also expect fireball reports all over the world in the coming days.

The Geminids can be annually observed between December 4 and December 17, with its peak activity being around December 14. The shower owes its name to the constellation Gemini from where the meteors seem to emerge from in the sky. Read more

A Boeing 757 passenger plane from Icelandair has gathered much attention since its exterior was decorated with the northern lights. According to Icelandair spokesman Guðjón Arngrímsson, the paint job was finished yesterday. Photos of the plane are now flying high on the net, with many users admiring its beauty.

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