Northern Lights ‘likely’ to illuminate parts of the UK TONIGHT including England and Wales with stunning aurora on show
THE Northern Lights may be visible from parts of the UK tonight after the sun kicked out a large explosion of plasma on Saturday.
According to the Met Office, auroral activity is expected to peak in the UK on 16 September thanks to this recent expulsion, called a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME).
“Auroral activity may increase on early Monday depending on the arrival time of a coronal mass ejection that left the Sun on Saturday,” the Met Office wrote.
“It is most likely to arrive and enhance the aurora after daylight hours on Monday.
“But there is a still a chance of an earlier arrival during the night that could give visible aurora with the naked eye across Scotland, Northern Ireland as well as parts of England and Wales, mainly in the north.”
Auroras – how do they work?
Here's the official explanation from Nasa...
- The dancing lights of the auroras provide spectacular views on the ground, but also capture the imagination of scientists who study incoming energy and particles from the sun
- Auroras are one effect of such energetic particles, which can speed out from the sun both in a steady stream called the solar wind and due to giant eruptions known as coronal mass ejections or CMEs
- After a trip toward Earth that can last two to three days, the solar particles and magnetic fields cause the release of particles already trapped near Earth, which in turn trigger reactions in the upper atmosphere in which oxygen and nitrogen molecules release photons of light
- The result: the Northern and Southern lights.
The strongest waves of plasma from the recent CME will hit Earth while the UK is in daylight hours, which may limit the a number of visibly bright auroras.
However, “lingering effects” may see the aurora persist into Monday night and early Tuesday morning, the Met Office said.
The forecaster added: “That aurora is likely to be visible where skies are clear from Scotland and Northern Ireland, as well as parts of England and Wales, mainly in the north.”
Northern Lights were also forecast to grace UK skies last week following a minor radiation storm from a growing sunspot.
Stargazers across the UK and Northern Ireland have caught the Northern Lights, also known as Aurora Borealis, several times this year.
The Sun is currently in a period of heightened solar activity, which is expected to cause a 23-year-high in Northern Lights sightings but also radio blackouts.
The phenomenon is known as the Solar Maximum, which typically comes around every 11 years or so.
This is when the Sun’s activity reaches its peak, and produces more auroral displays.
There are currently up to nine sunspot regions on the side of the Sun that faces Earth.
These regions are usually where CMEs are born, as they are localised fields of strong magnetic flux.
Best locations to watch
This week’s Northern Lights display is forecast to only be visible from northern parts of the UK and Northern Ireland.
Shetland Islands – Here, auroral displays are most visible between mid-October and March. But it’s best to avoid the towns and their light pollution.
Eryri, Conwy – Llyn Geirionydd lake, close to the town of Betws-y-Coed, is a local-favourite viewing spot, with snow-capped peaks in the backdrop.
Brancaster Staithe, Norfolk – This area was graced with bright aurora lights last year, namely in seaside towns Brancaster Staithe and Happisburgh.
Keswick, Cumbria – The Lake District is an over-the-radar spot for aurora hunters, but Derwentwater lake next to Keswick is a great place to photograph the lights.
The Sun – all the facts you need to know
What is it, why does it exist, and why is it so ruddy hot all the time?
- The Sun is a huge star that lives at the centre of our solar system
- It’s a nearly perfect sphere of hot plasma, and provides most of the energy for life on Earth
- It measures a staggering 865,000 miles across – making it 109 times bigger than Earth
- But its weight is 330,000 times that of Earth, and accounts for almost all of the mass in the Solar System
- The Sun is mostly made up of hydrogen (73%), helium (25%) and then a number of other elements like oyxgen, carbon and iron
- Its surface temperature is around 5,505C
- Scientists describe the Sun as being “middle-aged”
- The Sun formed 4.6billion years ago, and tt’s been in its current state for around four billion years
- It’s expected that it will remain stable for another five billion years
- It doesn’t have enough mass to explode as a supernova
- Instead, we expect it to turn a hulking red giant
- During this phase, it will be so big that it will engulf Mercury, Venus and Earth
- Eventually it will turn into an incredibly hot white dwarf, and will stay that way for trillions of years