Northern Lights: Why You've Got A Great Chance Of Seeing It Over The Next Few Weeks
The Northern Lights - one of the veritable natural wonders of the world - could be seen over British skies for the next few weeks.
Two coinciding space weather patterns have heightened the chance of seeing the spectacular phenomenon, according to forecasters.
The Met Office said people in northern England, north Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland had an increased likelihood of seeing the aurora borealis (pictured above over Derwentwater in the Lake District) because of a burst of solar wind.
The natural wonder, usually caused by solar particles colliding in the atmosphere, may be visible overnight.
And forecasters said that it was because the “disturbance” was strong and the sky mainly clear in northern regions.
The improved chances of a sighting were down to the combined effect of a “coronal hole” near the Sun’s equator, which had aligned with Earth and was sending high-speed solar winds to buffet the planet, and the time of year.
A Met Office spokesman said: “We are now in a period, lasting a few weeks, where these two factors are working together to increase the chances of geomagnetic disturbances, which in turn bring with them the aurora.
"The strength of the disturbance directly relates to how far south the aurora is visible, or how far north if you are in the southern hemisphere, and of course you need clear skies to see it.
"The season of the year has an influence.
“The science behind this is not fully understood, but the two equinoctial periods in spring and autumn tend to produce an increase in aurora compared with winter and summer.”
(Pictures credited to PA and REX)
