Only 2 percent of the world's population lives within range of the Aurora Borealis. This area is known as the auroral zone, because it's beneath a circle (called the Aurora Borealis Oval) centered on Earth's northern magnetic pole. Solar winds carry the excess gas past our magnetic field at both poles, entering our atmosphere. The particles in the gas collide with gases in our atmosphere, activating the light show. A sort of natural neon, it draws tourists to remote Pennsylvania towns; international nature travelers to Tromso, Norway, the eye of the Aurora Borealis Oval, and brave campers to Yukon, Canada, where they're the most visible in North America.
Few man-made attractions trigger such wanderlust. They appeal to everyone, even if they say, "Nature's not really my thing." That's why renowned German luggage company Rimowa used the phenomenon as inspiration for its all-new Cabin Carry-On, a limited-edition design that recreates its hypnotic glow. The Aurora Borealis Edition, which is limited to just 1,000 units, is a part of Rimowa's ever-growing Celestial Collection, an assortment inspired by, well, other-worldly destinations: Mars, Mercury and the Moon, among others.
This is the first version to focus on somewhere you can actually visit. (We haven't colonized Mars or the Moon... yet, and the one-off trip tickets are far too expensive for everyday people.) It has an eye-catching pattern of glowing greens and violets set against black aluminum. There are specks of white, too, which act as stars, and the suitcase's usual sheen almost makes it flicker, even though it's just reflecting overhead light.
Now, no matter where you are, you can see the Northern Lights, albeit on your luggage as you wheel through the Austin airport, not in the clear Texas sky overhead. But for space fans, even those nutty for nature, this is by far the best Aurora Borealis merch money can buy.
