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| Video: A year of shimmering Northern Lights in Norway Posted: 01 Jan 2014 08:50 PM PST A Norwegian photographer spent 2013 documenting Auroras and whittled his footage down to five minutes. Here's the result  Yes, photos of the Aurora Borealis in the Arctic and Antarctic are beautiful, but it takes this stunning video to convey the full, other-worldly effect of one of nature's most spectacular sights. After quitting his job as an equities broker, Ole Christian Salomonsen became a full-time photographer and videographer. He spent the last few years capturing the Northern Lights in video in Norway, annually compressing the footage into 5-minute videos. The 2013 video above features the lights over the natural landscape of Norway and the cityscape of Tromsø. Our favorite bit is at 3:55 -- when the Aurora Borealis can be seen atop a sea of clouds hovering over the city. READ: 27 sights that will remind you how incredible Earth is "Auroras are visible in many places but northern Norway is the best place to experience it due to the great arctic landscapes and seascapes you can use with Auroras when photographing," says Salomonsen. "Norway also has tall, steep mountains, long fjords and snow covered trees. Combining these with Auroras in the sky makes the whole experience more complete." The relatively gentle climate and great infrastructure are more reasons to go see them in Norway, says the Aurora fanatic. But what's the best way to capture the beauty of the natural spectacle? You have to watch for coronal holes -- the dark side of the sun, says Salomonsen. "These follow the rotations of the sun (28 days) and often when the coronal hole is facing earth, you can get flares and coronal mass ejections [bursts of gas] that will result in the greatest Northern Lights on earth." Salomonsen's previous videos of Norway can be seen here.      |
| CNNGo in Johannesburg: Haunted past, happening present Posted: 05 Dec 2013 11:01 PM PST This month, CNNGo visits South Africa's largest city and one of its most exciting -- home to radical theater, apartheid relics and a museum of beer  Johannesburg, or more commonly Joburg, may not be one of the rainbow nation's unusual three capital cities but it sure feels like one -- it's South Africa's largest metropolis and the hub of its wealthiest province. This month, CNN's roving travel show CNNGo visited Joburg's lively art spaces, some moving reminders of the country's divided past and a hotel renowned for its hearty cooking and high-minded clientele. Here are five highlights from the show: Constitution Hill
Built in 1893, the building known as Constitution Hill was formerly a fort and then a prison where Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela, among many other political activists, were held. In the mid-1990s, it became post-apartheid South Africa's new Constitutional Court. Its fraught history endures in its current construction -- the court chamber and two of the staircases in the building are made from bricks recycled from the remand block of the old prison. Constitution Hill, Braamfrontein 2017, Johannesburg; +27 11 381 3100 MORE: 4 nuggets of Joburg history Newtown
Newtown -- where some of the first forced removals of non-white South Africans took place under apartheid -- is now one of the country's hubs of culture, food and entertainment. Market Theater -- known for its dissident productions under apartheid -- and Museum Africa, which chronicles the continent's first civilizations, are among the most significant attractions in the area. The neighborhood is also the home to the Sci-Bono science discovery center, popular with kids, and the SAB World of Beer, which is probably more popular with adults. Other nightlife and music venues abound in this lively part of the city. Find out more about Newtown on the district's official website.
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