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Edinburgh Live
Edinburgh Live
National
Katie Williams

Northern Lights to dazzle in Scottish skies tonight - here's how to see them

Scots may be in for the chance to witness a colourful solar spectacle similar to the Northern Lights

A sight that is on many people's bucket lists could be spotted on Wednesday night, experts report.

Set to arrive on February 2, a powerful solar flare will shine through the sky following a powerful eruption near the surface of the Sun that happened on Saturday morning.

READ MORE- Hero Edinburgh nurses have to 'queue in dark' for bus despite car park 'lying empty'

A wave of charged magnetic particles is on a path towards Earth and is expected to arrive today, according to NASA’s Solar and Heliospheric Observatory.

WalesOnline reports that scientists have stated that satellites and power grids are "in no danger".

Those who are lucky enough to be on higher latitudes may observe a phenomenon similar to the Northern Lights, Astronomer Dr Tony Phillips explained, as a result of the charged particles interacting with our atmosphere.

So any Edinburgh residents might want to prepare for climbing up some hills.

On his website, Dr Phillips explains that the powerful eruption, also known as a coronal mass ejection (CME), may lead to a G2-rated solar storm.

The G2 refers to the severity of the solar storm, which are graded on a scale of G1 to G5, with G1 being "minor" and the latter being "extreme".

Dr Phillips continued: “Moderately-strong G2-class geomagnetic storms are possible after the CME arrives.

“Power grids and satellites are in no danger, however. This is a low hazard ‘auroras only’ space weather event.”

Back in November, Edinburgh Live reported how the Northern Lights were last spotted across parts of Edinburgh and Lothian.

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