Northern Lights - Rovaniemi, Lapland, Finland

This sky camera looks out over the snowy landscape at Rovaniemi, the capital of Finnish Lapland, where on clear, dark winter nights green curtains of the aurora borealis can ripple across the sky above the city.

Rovaniemi sits on the Arctic Circle and is best known as the official hometown of Santa Claus. Its long winter nights and wide northern skies make it one of Europe's most popular places to see the northern lights.

Most of the city was burned down by retreating German troops in 1944. The architect Alvar Aalto drew up a new plan, called the Reindeer Antler plan because the shape of the city center resembles a reindeer's antlers.

Did You Know? The aurora's green glow comes from oxygen high in the atmosphere, lit up when particles from the sun crash into Earth's upper air.

See more live aurora cams, explore the Sky collection, browse live webcams in Finland, or explore our Live Webcam Map.

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