Stargazers across the country have been lucky enough to catch a glimpse of the Northern Lights, also known as the aurora borealis, several times already in 2024.
This weekend looks set to give Brits another chance to see what is described as “one of the most spectacular displays in the night sky”.
Best time to see the Northern Lights
The Northern Lights may be visible in parts of the UK overnight on Saturday (August 10 to 11) and Sunday (August 11 to 12), according to the Met Office.
The Met Office Space Weather forecast reads: “A Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) arrived at Earth around 1300UTC today (10 Aug), and may lead to minor to moderate geomagnetic storms,” the weather experts.
“Peak geomagnetic activity is expected during daylight hours in the northern hemisphere however, but some residual overnight activity may result in a slight enhancement of the auroral oval during the night of the 10th into the 11th, with aurora potentially visible across northern Scotland and similar latitudes where skies are clear, during the limited hours of darkness.
“Further CME arrivals are possible during 11th and 12th, resulting in minor to moderate geomagnetic storm periods.
“During the nights of the 11th and 12th, where skies are clear, aurora may be visible at times across Scotland, possibly northern England and northern Ireland.”
Best places to see the Northern Lights in the UK this weekend
According to the Space Weather forecast from the Met Office, the best spots to see the Northern Lights on Saturday night/Sunday morning (August 10 and 11) will be Northern Scotland.
Then on Sunday night/Monday morning (August 11 and 12) there is the possibility of catching a glimpse of the picturesque display in skies above Scotland, northern England and northern Ireland.
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What are the Northern Lights?
The Northern Lights are caused by charged particles from the sun hitting gases in the Earth’s atmosphere.
The colours occur due to different gases in the Earth’s atmosphere being energised by the charged particles.
Nitrogen and oxygen are the two most common gases in the atmosphere, with nitrogen emitting purple, blue and pink colours and oxygen emitting green.
