Brits have already been treated to a spectacular display of the Northern Lights this week and, according to the Met Office, those who missed out will have another chance tonight. Stargazers were able to catch a glimpse of the stunning phenomenon last night after Earth was hit by a powerful coronal mass ejection.
The phenomenon arrived at Earth late yesterday afternoon, as the Met Office issued a G3 yellow geomagnetic storm watch from 6pm yesterday until 6pm today. Though the peak of the activity was last night, the Met Office has said those in certain parts of the UK could continue to see activity tonight.
G3 is classed as a strong storm, meaning aurora “may be seen in Scotland and Northern Ireland and as low as Mid-Wales and the Midlands.” The forecaster’s Northern Hemisphere aurora forecast sys: “A coronal mass ejection (CME) arrived at Earth in the late afteroon on April 15.
“Its associated effects may continue into Wednesday night and may bring aurora to far northern parts of the UK and similar geomagnetic latitudes. The auroral oval will ease to background levels thereafter.”
The Northern Lights are caused by huge explosions of activity from the Sun that throw out large amounts of charged particles in space, called solar wind. These giant explosions on the Sun are what’s called coronal mass ejections, which see particles flying away from the Sun at approximately one million miles per hour, according to the Met Office.
When they become caught by the Earth’s magnetic field they can then collide with gas molecules in the atmosphere to create a geomagnetic storm. Light is emitted from these collisions at various wavelengths, which form the breathtaking colourful displays in the sky.
Social media was full of photos of the stunning display last night, with the lights reaching sky watchers with clear skies on the Isle of Skye in Scotland and Seascale in Cumbria. One man said his 54-year wait to see the aurora borealis was worthwhile as he snapped some stunning pictures from the Isle of Skye.
Another person saw the Northern Lights from their viewpoint along the Cumbria coast. They captured a glorious blend of purple and blue light up the night’s sky. Sharing images on Facebook, one woman, who saw the phenomenon in Cumbria, wrote: “A decent Northern Lights show over Seascale (Tuesday 16th April). I was very lucky to catch it between the clouds.”
And Chris Brown, a beauty salon owner, posted on Facebook: “Bit emotional it has to be said. 54 years I’ve waited to see the Northern Lights and tonight I popped my cherry. Thank you #Scotland, you have delivered on so many levels.” He saw the Northern Lights on the Isle of Skye, as did Ralph Tonge, a photographer based on the nearby Outer Hebrides.
Posting photos on Facebook, Mr Tonge said: “So lucky to be able to see the Northern Lights again this evening. Dancing in the sky, and when it got properly dark and my eyes acclimatised, I could definitely see a hint of green. The camera picked up the colours which you can see reflected on the sea.”
Stunning glimpses of the Northern Lights were also forecast across the US, including in Alaska, Washington, Oregon and Maine. When an aurora borealis geomagnetic storm happened in October last year, people as far south as Essex sent the Mirror amazing pictures of the skies.
At Reach and across our entities we and our partners use information collected through cookies and other identifiers from your device to improve experience on our site, analyse how it is used and to show personalised advertising. You can opt out of the sale or sharing of your data, at any time clicking the “Do Not Sell or Share my Data” button at the bottom of the webpage. Please note that your preferences are browser specific. Use of our website and any of our services represents your acceptance of the use of cookies and consent to the practices described in our Privacy Notice and Cookie Notice.