Step outside and look at the sky tonight because a solar event means the Northern Lights could be visible. The Met Office has given Brits a heads up as a mix of fast solar winds and a ‘Coronal Mass Ejection’ from the Sun means the dazzling display of magnetic light might turn the heavens green if you are lucky enough to live somewhere dark enough.
On Sunday, March 24, the weather service wrote on X: “A combination of fast solar winds and the recent arrival of a Coronal Mass Ejection from the sun, could lead to the #aurora being seen tonight, especially across the north of the UK.”
The Northern Lights, or aurora borealis, are created when energised particles from the Sun slam into Earth’s upper atmosphere at speeds of up to 45million mph. As our planet’s protective magnetic field redirects the charged particles toward the poles, they collide with gases in the Earth’s upper atmosphere, causing tiny flashes that fill the sky with colourful light like a neon lamp or cathode ray TV.
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The cause of the solar winds is a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME). This is a large eruption of magnetized super-hot gas from the Sun’s outer atmosphere that spreads outward into space.
These very-high energy particles can cause radiation poisoning to humans, and large doses could be fatal, but the Earth’s atmosphere and magnetosphere protect us from their effects.
In a simulation posted on X, with green meaning 50 per cent likely through to yellow and red for 100 per cent likely, the lights are set to drape over Iceland, the Faroe Islands, and northern-most Scotland. However, they should be visible from the north of the UK with peak visibility thought to be at 9pm.
Aurora Watch UK, a warning system setup by bods at Lancaster University, has issued a red alert for tonight. It means the lights should be visible from the UK if clouds don’t get in the way.
While the chance of seeing them from London is pretty low, it wouldn’t hurt to go outside and have a look.
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