Currency of Norway 200 Norwegian Kroner note 1994
Central Bank of Norway - Norges Bank
Obverse: The motif on the obverse of the note is a portrait of Kristian Birkeland. The northern lights rising upwards toward the North Star are the central feature of the background.
We also find well-known constellations such as Little Bear (Ursa Minor) and the Big Dipper.
Birkeland's "Terrella" where he produced artificial northern lights is depicted in the area containing the watermarks. Birkeland demonstrated that when plasma escapes from the sun and travels through space, the earth's magnetic field compresses it on the daylight side of the earth and stretches it into a tail on the night side, ultimately producing the northern lights.
The snow crystal symbolises winter, the time of year when the northern lights are most visible, and includes a number of security features.
Reverse: The reverse side of the note is based on the northern lights that are visible during the day. Whereas the northern lights on our side of the earth are visible along the coast of northern Norway at night, they are visible over Svalbard, a Norwegian archipelago in the Arctic Ocean, during the day.
Discovery of the auroral oval and the northern lights on the day side of the earth is one of the most sensational results of modern space research.
The illustrations in the lower right hand corner of the note depict Birkeland's thoughts about the orientation of electric currents in connection with the northern lights. Currents near the auroral arcs flow parallel to the ground, while those that are higher up flow along the earth's magnetic field lines. These currents are called Birkeland Currents.
The banknote contains a portrait of Kristian Birkeland. When the banknote is held up to the light, the watermark a portarit of Kristian Birkeland - and the security thread are clearly visible. The watermark, a row of portraits identical to the main portrait, emerges in various shades of grey. On the new banknotes, you can feel a variation in the thickness of the paper along the watermark. When the banknote is held up to the light, you can see the security thread with the text NORGES BANK.
Size in mm: 144 x 70. Issue date: 1 November 1994 and upgraded in 2002 with a hologram, foil stripe. Notes with annual figures from 2009 (printed abroad) have a letter in front of the serial number.
Norwegian Banknotes - Norway Paper Money
1994-2013 Issue
50 Kroner 100 Kroner 200 Kroner 500 Kroner 1000 Kroner
Kristian Birkeland
Kristian Olaf Bernhard Birkeland (13 December 1867 – 15 June 1917) was a Norwegian scientist. He is best remembered as the person whose theories of atmospheric electric currents elucidated the nature of the Aurora borealis. In order to fund his research on the aurorae, he invented the electromagnetic cannon and the Birkeland-Eyde process of fixing nitrogen from the air. Birkeland was nominated for the Nobel Prize seven times.