Hi all,
I made a last minute dash across Victoria last Thursday to witness my first CME impact at Wilsons Prom at 1.20 am Friday morning (18-01-2013). I was hoping to observe from the SW coast, but cloud was predicted so had to move east. I'd done some nightscapes from Wilsons Prom the previous Thursday, so knew it was good for south viewing.
The CME hit with a burst. Within a minute the aurora went from nothing to naked eye. After a couple of minutes it died down. 10 minutes later it ignited again, with more red. I could see the rays to the right of the attached image naked eye, and just make out a faint orange colour.
Conditions on Norman Beach were hot with a moderate north wind. Bioluminescence lit up the waves. There were lots of people wandering around earlier, but by 1.20 they were gone. A couple of drunks did wander by though around 3 asking if they could stand in front of my timelapsing cam
Thanks for looking
Colin
ps. Added 3 additional images. The 4th was taken 3 minutes after CME impact when the KP index was around 5.