Rare vertical northern lights are captured in the sky above Russian town in a series of breathtaking photos
- Valentin Zhiganov, 44, took the incredible pictures near his home city in Russia
- He said he’d never seen the rare aurora, also known as ‘light pillars’, ever before
- Mr Zhiganov had been intending to photograph two women posing in a hot tub
These stunning photographs capture the natural phenomena of vertical northern lights, seen above a city in northwestern Russia.
Valentin Zhiganov, 44, took the incredible pictures near his home city of Apatity in Murmansk Oblast, Russia in temperatures of minus 30 degree Celsius.
The ‘vertical aurora’ are also known as light pillars and Mr Zhiganov admits he was surprised to spot the rare lights.
A photographer was able to capture some stunning shots of the rare vertical aurora, also known as ‘pillars of light’
Valentin Zhiganov, 44, took the incredible pictures near his home city of Apatity in Murmansk Oblast, Russia
He had intended to photograph two women in a hot tub with the aurora in the background when he spotted the pillars.
They can be seen mixing with the lights of the city while the local power plant looms in the background.
Mr Zhiganov said: ‘Our plan was to take some shots of the girls in the hot tub with the aurora in the background, but on the way we saw these pillars so we of course pulled over to take some shots.
Mr Zhiganov was on his way to photograph these two women while they sat in a hot tub
The incredible pillars can be seen mixing with the lights of the city while the local power plant looms in the background
‘This optical illusion is known as light pillars, it’s a type of aurora and it’s pretty rare – especially with the pillars going so high.
‘It was the first time I ever saw this type of aurora and we all enjoyed the view – despite the low temperatures.
‘I am really glad I was able to take some decent shots of this rare optical illusion.’
Mr Zhiganov said that he had never seen these lights before and he was glad he’d been able to capture the rare shots
The photographer had intended to photograph two women in a hot tub with the aurora in the background when he spotted the pillars