Occasionally, a stroke of luck means that the UK and the US get graced with the ability to see the northern lights right from home. That luck could be kicking in soon with a moderate chance of the auroras making an appearance tonight (Wednesday 24 July).
While the northern lights are usually only visible from countries such as Canada, Russia and Sweden, they are sometimes visible from further away – like when they were seen from Penzance, Cornwall, earlier this year.
Reaching Cornwall is especially rare, and seeing the northern lights from the UK isn’t exactly commonplace. It requires a severe geomagnetic storm to get the northern lights to appear over the UK which doesn’t happen often.
When can you see the northern lights tonight?
Space weather reports indicate that a solar storm could hit Earth this week, making the northern lights visible in parts of the UK on Wednesday 24 July.
Unfortunately, only very small sections of the UK will stand a chance of seeing them – the auroras could appear in the northern regions of England and Northern Ireland.
In the US, the lights could be visible over some northern and upper midwest states, from New York to Idaho.
However, because of the time of year, there are limited hours of darkness so the window to see them will be quite slim.
How to increase your chances of seeing the northern lights
If the stars (or geomagnetic storms, in this case) align and it's possible to see the auroras, what is the best to sport them? There are a key few tips to increase your chances of witnessing this event.
Firstly, get away from built-up areas. The lights are best seen when the skies are clear, so finding somewhere with not too many clouds and or light pollution is best.
It is also best to find a spot that is facing north. Coasts that face north are likely to give the best viewing experience due to the lack of obstructions and light pollution at sea.
What causes the northern lights?
The northern lights are a rather impressive example of solar activity. They are caused by high-energy particles from the Sun colliding with low-energy particles in the Earth’s atmosphere.
The reason we sometimes see this event in the UK and parts of the world they’re not normally seen is the geomagnetic storms. These push the aurora further south than usual.
The chance of these types of storms increases during the declining phases of the solar cycle. During this phase, coronal holes (areas of low density) on the Sun’s equator cause high-speed solar wind: streams of charged particles that give the Earth a battering.
This causes disturbances in the Earth’s magnetic field which increases the likelihood of auroras as high-energy particles are more likely to collide. In fact, if it wasn’t for Earth’s atmosphere, the solar wind would destroy all life – how cheery!
Why are the northern lights different colours?
Interestingly, the lights aren’t always the same. Depending on which atoms in Earth’s atmosphere are reacting with the solar energy, they can change colour.
Green auroras are created by oxygen atoms in high altitudes. But if you’re seeing blue, yellow, or red, that means lower-altitude oxygen or nitrogen atoms are colliding with the solar particles.
What does 'aurora borealis' mean?
When it comes to the northern lights, the phrase ‘aurora borealis’ is often seen. This simply translates to ‘dawn of the northern winds’, a pretty cool nickname for the northern lights. Boreas was the god of the north wind in Ancient Greek mythology.
The southern lights also get a nickname – aurora australis. As you might have guessed, this translates to ‘dawn of the southern winds’. Like the northern lights, these can sometimes be pushed to new locations with geomagnetic storms. In the past, they have been witnessed in New Zealand, Australia and Tasmania.
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