NEW YORK: Stargazers in the UK felt thrilled this week watching the stunning Northern Lights show, which was visible across the country thanks to an unusual solar activity.
The Northern Lights or Aurora Borealis are usually visible in the northern part of the globe, and people in Britain have to trek to Sweden to experience the show. Solar flares throw out high energy particles towards Earth atmosphere which interact with the atmosphere and magnetic field and result in appearance of Northern Lights.
Last week, an unusual solar flare meant people in Britain could watch bands of beautiful red and green lights appearing in skies. The show was clearly visible for a lucky few who had the patience to stay up all night on Monday and Tuesday. The lights were seen across Europe and North America.
According to Met Office, another Northern Lights show can be seen across the UK during the weekend, lighting up the sky with a flood of wispy colors.
NASA’s observatory also detected second solar flare ejecting high energy particles into space. These particles will take two to five days to reach Earth, and will make the night sky glitter with colorful lights this weekend.
“To see the Northern Lights, wait until at least half an hour after sunset, go outside away from artificial lights, let your eyes accustom to the dark and look towards the north.” said a Met Office spokesman.
“It’s all a bit difficult to say who will and won’t see it if it happens. It’s all a bit ‘if’ at the minute.” meteorologist Helen Roberts told the Manchester Evening News.
Time between midnight and 3 am would be the best to watch skies filled with colors. Any place which is pollution free and with clear skies would be the best place to watch the aurora.
