There is still some light as we directly drive from UNIS to the other side of Adventdalen, across from Longyearbyen. Steam rises from the fjord.
The air near the ground (where we stand) is -20°C cold. It is ok as there is no breeze. The mini Talon is having fun at -12°C in 50m altitude. This has often been the case here in the valley: we are freezing and the plane is enjoying the warmer air further up.
The sky is great, full of stars. The LEDs of the mini Talons mark his path. Every now and then a touch of a polar light draws across the sky. Above the contours of the mountains to the south you can see a light green at the distance. We are too far north on Svalbard for strong polar lights today.
For the first time I am cold. Standing motionless in the cold can be unpleasant even with good equipment. The mini talon flies profiles over valley and fjord.
We warm up in the old polar light station after two flights. Then we head out for another profile to 1000m and stacked lines.