The Northern Lights are set to appear yet again on Sunday night after Britain’s skies lit up green and purple on Friday and Saturday.
AuroraWatch UK has issued a red alert, meaning auroras are likely, with skies in Scotland and possibly the far north of England and Northern Ireland expected to enjoy more views.
The natural phenomenon is a rare occurrence in the UK, and requires a severe or extreme geomagnetic storm to bring the aurora belt southwards from Norway, Iceland, and Greenland.
Although the spectacle is more often seen near the Arctic Circle and northern Scotland, it was visible as far south as Norfolk on Friday night, with other parts of the UK also enjoying the natural light show on Saturday.
The Met Office said: “The Northern Lights can produce a spectacular light show sometimes seen as far south as Scotland and Northern England/Ireland - if skies are clear.”
Aurora borealis displays are caused by massive explosions on the sun known as coronal mass ejections (CME). The particles that erupt from the sun’s surface interact with gases in Earth's atmosphere and create a colourful display that can be seen 100 to 200km above Earth.
Oxygen, nitrogen, and other gases in the atmosphere light up in reds, blues, and pinks.
Some pictures from Friday showed the sky illuminated green at Bamburgh in Northumberland in the UK. People also reported seeing the lights in Canada and Russia.
On Thursday, the Met Office said to “keep an eye out” for the northern lights over the next couple of nights, adding that “sightings are most likely across Scotland where skies are clear but perhaps into northern England too”.
The weather agency encouraged people to find a dark location with no light pollution, and look toward the northern horizon, for their best chance at seeing the auroras.
Its space weather forecast for Sunday said: “Residual CME influence, followed by coronal hole fast winds are expected to maintain enhanced geomagnetic activity during 22-23 March.
“Aurora likely to be visible at times on Sunday night across Scotland, and perhaps the far north of England and N Ireland. A slowly decreasing chance of enhanced auroral visibility then likely into the period.”
