THE best time and place to spot the Northern Lights over the next few days have been revealed by the Met Office.
The phenomenon is predicted to reappear over British skies this weekend with your best shot at seeing it being on Saturday night.
The Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights) occurs when charged particles from the sun hit gases in the Earth’s atmosphere[/caption]
The Met Office predicts the phenomenon could be visible from the UK over the weekend[/caption]
The reddest areas in the forecaster’s model represent the highest chance (90%) of seeing the lights[/caption]
The Met Office’s prediction map for 1am on Sunday morning[/caption]
Aurora borealis, more commonly the Northern Lights, occurs when solar storms interact with the Earth’s atmosphere.
When these storms react with atmospheric gases above our north and south magnetic poles, the result is beautiful displays of light in the sky.
The Met Office’s model predicts the best chance of seeing these lights will be on Saturday night.
At 10pm, there is a 90% likelihood of seeing the lights in the northernmost regions of mainland Scotland and its islands.
The rest of Scotland has around a 50% chance of seeing the aurora which last prominently appeared across the UK in May.
As you travel further south, the possibility of seeing the lights diminishes.
In the north of England, chances fall to just 10-20% at around 10pm on Saturday evening although these figures improve as the night progresses.
By 1am on Sunday, parts of northern England have a 50/50 chance of seeing the lights, while parts of the Midlands have around a 10-20% likelihood.
There is also a chance of seeing the Northern lights on both Friday and Sunday night across similar regions.
However, cloudy conditions are expected to make both dates harder to witness the aurora.
The Met Office said: “Aurora activity is expected to increase this weekend, leading to aurora potentially being visible across Scotland, Northern Ireland and northern England where skies are clear.
“Saturday night has the greatest likelihood of aurora being visible, with a chance that aurora may be visible further south, across central England and similar latitudes.”
If you’re keen to witness the phenomenon, your best chance is to head to a low-light area.
Experts also advise laying down on your back and looking up at the sky, giving your eyes some time to adjust to light.
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the best aurora views may come from phone cameras, which are better at capturing light than the naked eye.
What are the Northern Lights?
AURORA displays occur when charged particles collide with gases in the Earth’s atmosphere around the magnetic poles.
In the northern hemisphere, most of this activity takes place within a band known as the aurora oval, covering latitudes between 60 and 75 degrees.
When activity is strong, this expands to cover a greater area – which explains why displays can be occasionally seen as far south as the UK.
The visibility of the Northern Lights was increased on Friday because of an “extreme” geomagnetic storm, according to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
The phenomena appears as beautiful dancing green and purple ribbons of light that have captivated people for millennia.
