BEAUTIES OF AURORA.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20249, 8 May 1929, Page 11

BEAUTIES OF AURORA.

BYRD'S MEN ASTONISHED.

CHANGES IN TEMPERATURE

United Service. NEW YORK, May 6. [By Mr. Russell Owen. Copyrighted 192S by the New York Times Company and the St. Louis Post Dispatch. All rights for publication reserved throughout the

world. Wireless to the New York Timea.l BAY OF WHALES. May 5. The most beautiful aurora we have yet seen occurred last evening. It began at 7 p.m. and lasted, with varying intensity, until 1C.30. Every form of the aurora could bo seen, the corona, arches, curtains and streamer. Soon after seven o'clock came four waving curtains from west to east. First they were white but spots of rose began to glow in them and blushing they died down.

Then a curtain almost directly overhead seemed to part and a mass of whirling fire was seen glowing with rosv colours.

It was like a gyrating storm of fire, and so marvellous that it drew exclamations of astonishment from those who remained outside in the cold watching

One of those inexplicable changes of

the weather took place yesterday with a blizzard from the east. The wind reached a velocity of 40 miles per hour, and the temperature rose from 42 degrees below zero to 9 degrees abovo yero. It was so warm that we sank deeply in the drifts.

In the cold weather the snow, closely packed in drifts, rings hollow under foot and will support without sinking the weight of the heaviest man. After a warm day the thermometer again descended to-night to 32 degrees below zero. The average temperature in April was 29 degrees below zero, liarely double the average of that month recorded by the late Captain Amundsen.