The New York Times
November 25, 2025
• Quoted in “Fighting for the ‘Right to Night’ Under Starry, Rural Skies”: https://nyti.ms/3LQNeVn
Outside Magazine
September 2, 2025; Updated October 16, 2025
• Featured in the travel advice article “How to See the Northern Lights Without Leaving the U.S.”
Amateur Astronomy Magazine
December 2024 | Winter 2025/Issue #125
• Featured in an invited column on “Historic Aurora: Severe Geomagnetic Storm Lights Up the World”
Visit Keweenaw
November 4, 2024
• Featured in an interview on “Aurora Chasing in the Keweenaw for First Timers”
USA Today, 2024
May 18, 2024
• Featured in “One week ago, the northern lights stunned America. When will it happen again?”
NPR: All Things Considered
May 10, 2024
• Quoted as a primer for “The huge solar storm is keeping power grid and satellite operators on edge”
Michigan Public
May 10, 2024
• Interviewed for the article “Northern lights expected over much of Michigan this weekend”
Thrillist
“Catch the Northern Lights Without Leaving the Lower 48”
Magazine Feature Story, January 16, 2024
• Melissa and the Michigan Aurora Chasers, as well as other Aurora Chasing groups, were featured in a story in Thrillist Magazine.
Amateur Astronomy Magazine
Featured in 30th Anniversary Edition for Aurora Chasing, 2023
• Melissa wrote an invited column titled “Making the Dream a Reality”
Northern Express
Magazine Cover Story, November 11, 2023
“Aurora Chasers Teach Us How to Watch the Sky”
• Melissa was interviewed and the Michigan Aurora Chasers group was featured in a story about chasing Northern Lights
iHeartRadio
Radio News Interview, May 21, 2023
“Melissa Kaelin on ‘Chasing the Aurora Borealis’”
• Melissa was interviewed about her new book, the Michigan Aurora Chasers, and the Aurora Summit
MLive
Feature Article, May 16, 2023
“Want to see the Northern Lights in Michigan? Follow these 5 expert tips”
• Melissa was interviewed for an article in MLive
Next Michigan News
Feature Article, April 2023
“The Beauty of the Northern Lights in Michigan”
• Melissa was interviewed for an article featuring the group she founded Michigan Aurora Chasers
MLive
Feature Article, April 28, 2023
“Why Michigan is seeing Northern Lights more often”
• Melissa was interviewed for an article in MLive
Copper Beacon
“Keweenaw Dark Sky Park to host first-ever Upper Peninsula Dark Sky Festival“
Feature Article, March 14, 2023
• Melissa was quoted in an article featuring the inaugural Upper Peninsula Dark Sky Festival, where she was a presenter
UP Matters
“Legends and mythology behind the aurora borealis”
Feature Article, March 13, 2023
• Melissa was interviewed for an article on the legends and mythology of the Northern Lights
Michigan Dark Sky Chapter
Spring, the Start of Dark Sky Events in Michigan
Quoted in March 2023 Newsletter
• Melissa’s photography, advice and book “Below the 45th Parallel” was featured by the Michigan Dark Sky Chapter
DP Review
“Orion and the Aurora: how to photograph these wonders of the winter night sky”
Feature Article, February 2, 2023
• Melissa was interviewed for an article on catching the rare natural phenomenon of the Aurora
Click on Detroit
“Northern Lights entering peak viewing season: Michigan group offers tips for spotting them”
Feature Article, December 2022
• Melissa was interviewed for a feature article on the Michigan Aurora Chasers and chasing the Northern Lights in the Great Lakes region.
WDIV Local 4 News in Detroit
“Michigan group using science to catch the elusive Northern Lights”
Feature Video, December 2022
• Melissa was interviewed for TV News about her role as the Founder of the Michigan Aurora Chasers, sharing advice to catch the Northern Lights locally. The segment also featured her iPhone photography and her new book “Below the 45th Parallel: The Beginner’s Guide to Chasing the Aurora in the Great Lakes Region.”
WJMN/U.P. Matters
“Forecasting the Northern Lights”
Feature Article, October 2022
• Melissa was interviewed on TV News about the The Michigan Aurora Chasers, a group she founded in 2021, and how to catch the Northern Lights in Michigan.
Washington Post
“How to see the northern lights without leaving North America”
Feature Article, June 2022
• The Michigan Aurora Chasers, a group founded by Melissa, was featured in an article on viewing the Aurora Borealis in North America.
FOX 47 TV News
“Local artists came together to launch a book and give proceeds to COVID relief”
Interviewed on TV News, June 2021
• Along with several writers from the anthology, Melissa was interviewed on TV news about the Social Gap Experiment Anthology. She created the book out of a pandemic project designed to bridge the gap of social distancing and support those in need during the outbreak of COVID-19.
Lansing State Journal
“Anthology of work from over 40 Greater Lansing artists celebrates connection during pandemic”
Feature Article, June 2021
• The Social Gap Experiment Anthology and the project’s summer book launch, slated for Saturday, June 12, 2021, was featured in the Lansing State Journal.
City Pulse
“Local Creatives Unite for the ‘Social Gap Experiment’”
Feature Article, December 2020
• The Social Gap Experiment Anthology, a publication raising funds for charity, was featured in the City Pulse, the arts and culture newspaper in Lansing, Michigan.
The Fledge: “Every Damn Day”
Interview with Jerry Norris at The Fledge, December 2020
• Jerry Norris of The Fledge interviewed Melissa about the Social Gap Experiment and a new anthology that will raise funds to support those who have lost income due to COVID-19.
Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/uOuo2TSsVuo
The Artist’s Umbrella
“Lansing’s Creative Community Writer”
Blog Entry, May 2020
• Melissa was featured in The Artist’s Umbrella blog ahead of her performance with the variety show, which was held virtually during the global pandemic of 2020.
The Palm Reader
“Fiction 440 Fosters Fun, Creativity”
Press Interview, May 2019
• Melissa was interviewed alongside many other flash fiction writers for a piece in The Palm Reader of Michigan. She will be presenting at the Fiction 440 event for the first time during their appearance at the East Lansing Art Festival.
Star Tribune Magazine
Press Interview, December 2018
“Secrets to spotting the Northern Lights revealed at northern Minnesota gathering”
• Melissa was interviewed with other aurora chasers for a feature story on Aurora Summit 18: Celebrating the Art, Culture, Science, and Photography of the Aurora Borealis.
Minnesota Monthly Magazine
“Winter Wonders: Rare and remarkable winter phenomena”
Cover Story, February 2016
• Melissa’s 10-page article on rare and remarkable winter phenomena was featured as the cover story for Minnesota Monthly in the February 2016 edition of the magazine. Coming up with a unique idea, Melissa pitched an essay to the editor on rare weather phenomena observed in northern winters, ranging from hoarfrost and frost flowers, to steam devils and light pillars. She also recommended the work of over a dozen photographers from Minnesota and Wisconsin, and 14 of those photographers were featured in the finished piece. Among the photos chosen for publication was her own image of sun dogs, after she captured the optical phenomenon on a point-and-shoot camera.
KARE 11
“Exploring Minnesota’s winter wonders”
TV News Spot, February 2016
• Melissa’s cover story for Minnesota Monthly and her photo of sun dogs were featured on KARE 11. The photo essay she pitched on rare and remarkable winter phenomena was inspired by incredible photos taken by many talented photographers in Minnesota and Wisconsin, ranging from hoarfrost and frost flowers, to steam devils and light pillars.
City Pages
“Great Lakes Aurora Hunters seek out amazing shots of the Northern Lights”
Arts Blog, March 2016
• Melissa wrote an article on the Northern Lights in the Great Lakes region for the City Pages Arts Blog, featuring a local group where she played an active role. She has written many articles on photography and art for City Pages.
Lake County News Chronicle
“Aurora Summit Heading to Two Harbors”
Press Interview, October 2017
• Melissa was interviewed alongside other organizers before the launch of Aurora Summit 17: Celebrating the Art, Folklore, Science, and Photography of the Aurora Borealis. She co-founded the event alongside Dixie J. Burbank and Mike Shaw Photography.
Rewire: Twin Cities Public Television
“Are You MN Enough? Great Lakes Aurora Hunters”
Documentary Short Interview, January 2015
• Interviewed for a short video documentary featuring the Great Lakes Aurora Hunters during their annual gathering in 2014. Here is the link to the Rewire website.
The Star Tribune
“Great Lakes northern lights hunters are a phenomenon all their own”
Feature Article Interview, November 2015
• Melissa was interviewed for a feature on aurora hunters in the Outdoors section of the Star Tribune, covering Minneapolis and Saint Paul. Print edition titled “Caught in the Lights.”
Lavender Magazine: Arts Spotlight
Thirty Years of Hope: The Minnesota AIDS Project
Art Review, December 2013
• Melissa’s paintings were reviewed for the first time by John Townsend in Lavender Magazine.
Excerpt:
“Melissa F. Kaelin’s majestic Sweet Raspberry Sunset is softly optimistic. Blackened natural objects on the earth’s surface stand with persevering will and hope as if calling on the universe, beguilingly and colorfully represented by the sky itself.
“The earthbound seem to be reaching for the healing power of a splendid, as opposed to an indifferent cosmos. In Kaelin’s view, it seems to be a cosmos where we can faithfully turn to at those times when we feel insignificant and hopeless.
“Her universe seems to have an overwhelming possibility so powerful that our humanness doesn’t quite yet have the ability to comprehend it. An invocation to cosmic healing energies that are hopefully finally returning to our ailing planet. Good news!”
Red Bird Chapbooks
“We Had To Go On Living”
Cover Artist, Prose Chapbook 2013
• Melissa was offered the opportunity to be a cover artist for a chapbook of essays on grief by Author Joe Wilkin for Red Bird Chapbooks. The author selected her painting “Mauve Memories” as the cover art for his chapbook entitled “We Had To Go On Living,” published in 2013.
The Madison Press
Feature Article Interview, April 2013
“Brush strokes soothe grieving heart of former resident”
• Featured on the front page of The Madison Press, in London, Ohio, before participating in Art-A-Whirl 2013.
Last Updated 2025
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