Scotland and most parts of the UK had a “once in a lifetime” opportunity to see a spectacular and vivid display of the northern lights (aurora borealis) over Friday night.
The lights are often seen up in the highlands of Scotland and in rural areas, but major cities or most of England rarely see the display. The activity has been the strongest in decades, the storm not being as significant since 2005.
Don’t worry if you missed them last night – they are set to be seen again tonight, Saturday, May 11, in a less intense but still visible display across most of the UK.
The intense display of the aurora borealis was caused by an extreme geomagnetic storm, which beamed streaks of purple, green, pink and blue through British skies. They could be seen from the naked eye but also picked up with gorgeous detail through phone and digital cameras.
Thousands of people across the country took to social media to post about their views of the lights, with people from all across Scotland to people as far down in London and Exeter.
They were surprisingly seen in some parts of America, such as Chicago and North Carolina, where it is very rarely experienced.
Some shocked online users from across the country stated “I never thought I would get to see the Aurora literally in my own back yard in Yorkshire”, and “Living so close to city lights this NEVER happens, something unbelievable on a Saturday night”, with the displays quickly becoming the most important topic on both Instagram and X.
There is a way that can inform people when the northern lights are prominent, which is by downloading ‘Aurora Watch UK’ onto their devices. The app takes your location and sends notifications when there is a possible chance of seeing them from the area.
Experts suggest that visiting dark and open spaces with very little light pollution gives people a better chance of seeing them, or by using long exposures in photography.
Aurora borealis is caused when charged particles are beamed out from the sun and hit into atmospheric gases, which then makes the lights appear. They are mostly seen clearly in the Earth’s most northerly points such as in Scandinavian countries, Iceland, Russia and Canada.
They can often be seen in weaker displays in more northern parts of the UK, especially when it is late into the night or early morning hours where there is no light pollution.
Feature image credit: Erin Hamilton
Third year journalism student at Stirling University
