A couple holidaying in Scotland have been left delighted after spotting the Northern Lights so early in the season. Michelle Brennan, 49, and her partner John, 55, were given an extra bonus on their trip to their new holiday home in Caithness when they spotted a green glow on the horizon.
The pair, who live in Stoke-on-Trent in Staffordshire, bought the holiday home in the village of Latheron in November after coming to Scotland every year on holiday for the past two decades.
"We mainly spent our time on the west coast," explained Michelle. "We used to visit Glendale on the Isle of Skye as we knew the Northern lights were frequently seen there in the winter months. We were never lucky enough to see them."
That all changed on their most recent trip north, with deputy primary school safeguarding lead Michelle alerted to the possibility of the Aurora on her phone.
She added: "I couldn't believe it, we had a notification red alert on Aurora Watch, which we have had many times before. We went out in the back garden at around 11.30 pm and the sky was just clearing from clouds and the stars were all peering through.
"I could see a haze which looked slightly green but I was not convinced."
The couple then decided to head back in for a cup of tea before heading back out to check again, with an excited Michelle stating: "Again it looked a hazy green so I got my phone and took a photo, I looked at the pic and it was green on the screen, I nearly peed myself.
"We could then see them visible with the naked eye, I screamed in the garden and think I did pee myself with excitement, the hubby gave me a right telling off as I woke the bloody neighbours up.
"I just couldn't believe our luck. For the first time in my life, I have seen the bloody northern lights in August in the back garden and with the naked eye."
Though not common in August, the Mirrie Dancers, as they are known in Scotland, can sometimes be seen in the late summer, but it is usually autumn and winter that they are strongest.
Happy to share the news with others, Michelle posted her location on local Facebook groups leading to people arriving by car to the area to see the incredible sight for themselves.
"We then came in as I thought the neighbours would be out telling us off. Apparently, our neighbour has seen them many times from the back garden, we have only been to the property four times since February and we feel very fortunate to see them last night and in August as well!"
They've since shared their pics on local North Coast 500 pages to alert tourists on the route to look up as they might get a chance to see this wonderful phenomenon over the next few nights.
Not only that, but they will also be renting out their Seaview cottage meaning anyone looking for a prime spot to view the lights over the coming months can check it out here.
Speaking about the sighting being relatively early this year, Andrew Allan who runs the Scotland’s Nightsky Facebook page, said: "It all depends on solar activity, the Aurora can come out at any point of the year and all you need is darkness and because we have just got our darkness back we can now see the shows, a few weeks ago there was high activity but we just couldn't see it due to our sky being too bright at night so there is no early Aurora as such."
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