How to see the Northern Lights tonight in England and Scotland

10 May 2023, 13:33

By Naomi Bartram

@naomibartram

See the Northern Lights tonight in the UK: How to watch the incredible light display and what causes it...

Stargazers could be treated to an incredible light display this week, as the Northern Lights will be visible from some parts of the UK.

In fact, the phenomenon, also known as the aurora borealis, could be visible as far south as North Wales and the Midlands.

While aroras are mostly seen in high-latitude regions such as the Arctic and Antarctic, the Met Office has confirmed UK residents may also get a glimpse.

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Experts think the light display will be visible on Thursday night too, in case anyone misses tonight.

The Met Office said in a statement: “In the most likely scenario aurora would become visible where skies are clear to Scotland as well as the north of England and Northern Ireland.

“There is a slight chance that the auroral oval could move further south to allow views from North Wales and the Midlands given clear views of the northern horizon.”

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The Northern Lights may also be visible to those in New Zealand and Australia, as they added: “In the most likely scenario aurora would become visible to the far south of New Zealand and Tasmania.

“There is a slight chance that the auroral oval could move further north to allow views from the south of mainland Australia and South Island of New Zealand given clear viewing conditions of the southern horizon.”

According to the British Geological Survey, you might see the aurora in the far north of Scotland every few months, but less often in the south.

Those who can see it most clearly are in Northern Canada and Russia, Greenland, Iceland and other parts of Scandinavia.

What causes the Northern Lights?

According to Greenwich Museum, the northern lights we see are caused by activity on the surface of the Sun.

The Sun sends out a stream of electrically charged particles called the solar wind which travels from the Sun to the Earth at great speed.

The Earth is surrounded by a magnetic field which forces the charged particles in the solar wind toward the planet’s northern and southern polar regions.

The particles move downward through the Earth’s upper atmosphere and crash into atoms and molecules of gases such as oxygen and nitrogen which cause them to give off light.

This light is an aurora and their colours are determined by the different gases.