The Met Office has revealed whether the Northern Lights could be visible in the UK on Sunday night after the dazzling display lit up skies in the early hours of this morning.
Stargazers were treated to a dazzling display early on October 11, which was visible across large swathes of the UK. The aurora borealis lit up skies over the ruins of Dunstanburgh Castle on the Northumberland coast. Pictures also captured the green and pink spectacle as far south as Kent and Surrey.
Forecast for Sunday and Monday night
The Met Office has now revealed if the Northern Lights could be visible in the UK again on Sunday and Monday night. Senior Operational Meteorologist Greg Dewhurst said: "The Northern lights are possible again tonight and tomorrow night. They could be a little weaker tonight so most likely seen across Scotland, Northern Ireland and northern England. They may be a little stronger again Monday night so could be seen further south into central areas."
The spectacle can sometimes be better seen through a camera than by the naked eye. "Long exposure camera shots may show something each night a little further south than the above visible by eye forecast," Mr Dewhurst added.
Saturday night sightings
On Saturday evening, the Northern Lights were visible in the UK's skies. Stargazers took to social media to report sightings of the phenomenon across various parts of the country, following a forecast by the Met Office that the startling space colours would be viewable overnight.
Reports from Reddit flooded in on Saturday night, with sightings in the North of England, Scotland and the Midlands. @astronemma said: "The further north you are the better, but I've heard reports from the Midlands. Bigger thing will be the cloud coverage." As more sightings were confirmed, Aurora Watch UK issued a red alert for sightings of the aurora borealis on Saturday night.
What causes the Northern Lights
In its space weather forecast for Saturday, the Met Office had said: "Two glancing coronal mass ejections followed by a coronal hole high speed stream bring a daily chance of enhancing the auroral oval, with sightings possible across Scotland and similar geomagnetic longitudes where skies are clear between 10-13 Oct."
The Northern Lights is a phenomenon that is most visible in the time around the equinoxes in spring and autumn. It is triggered by solar activity, the Met Office said. The sun emits charged particles known as solar wind, which, when they interact with the Earth's magnetic field, are funnelled towards the magnetic poles.
As the energetic particles collide with gases in the upper atmosphere, they release energy as light. Oxygen produces green and, at higher altitudes, red, while nitrogen creates blue and purple hues, the weather forecaster said.
