Witnessing the Northern Lights sits high atop many travellers’ bucket lists. Colleagues return from incredible adventures through Finnish Lapland’s snowy peaks and Norway's northernmost reaches with tales of phantasmagorical skies, green, blues and reds dancing before glittering stars.
There are plenty of amazing places to see the Northern Lights, from northern Europe to the Alaskan wilderness. However, once in a blue moon, we’re treated to vibrant, illuminated skies in the UK.
On the night of Tuesday 11 November into the early hours of Wednesday 12 November, night owls were treated to such a spectacular sight as the Aurora Borealis made a rare appearance over British skies.
Luckily, for those who missed the show, there’s a high likelihood that a similar performance will dazzle astrophiles on the night of Wednesday 12 November, offering another chance to see the dancing lights without having to hop on a winter escape.
The current peak in solar activity, and the reason we’re seeing the Northern Lights further south than usual, is a result of eruptions on the sun known as coronal mass ejections. These are described by NASA as a violent release of bubbles of gas and magnetic fields that can accelerate to several million miles per hour in a spectacular explosion.
Such solar storms pose a risk to astronauts and, when they’re powerful, life on Earth. Coronal mass ejections may interfere with satellites and communications on our home planet, causing train delays and temporary signal losses.
The Carrington Event was the most notable case of solar storms affecting everyday life on Earth. The most intense geomagnetic storm in recorded history triggered aurora events as far south as Mexico and Hawaii, and disrupted telegraph systems worldwide.
Luckily, astronomers are expecting minimal interference – instead, anticipating fantastical light displays.
So, who has the best chance of seeing the Northern Lights? The MET Office expects England, the Midlands, East Anglia and the northernmost reaches of Scotland to benefit the most from the solar storms, with much of northern England and Wales unfortunately covered in cloud.
With the most vibrant displays expected before Midnight, we’ll be keeping our eyes to the skies in the hope of a rare visit from these fantastical illuminations.