Map reveals exact spots to catch Northern Lights TONIGHT as Met Office issues ‘90% chance’ alert – will you spot them?
THE NORTHERN Lights are set to dazzle parts of the UK tonight, with the Met Office issuing a 90 per cent chance alert.
Northern regions are expected to be able to witness the phenomenon late on Thursday night, heading into the early hours of Friday.
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Areas in the far north of Scotland and the Shetland Islands have the highest chance of being able to see the dazzling display.
In a post on X, the Met Office said: “During clear spells tonight, aurora sightings are possible in the Shetland Islands and the far north of Scotland.
“There may also be a chance further south with long exposure photography.”
Lucky Brits who find themselves in these areas have the best chance to see the lights at around 11pm on Thursday night.
By midnight, chances of seeing the aurora reach around 90 per cent for these most northern regions.
In its four-day space weather forecast, the Met Office said solar wind speeds are expected to “become strong” tonight and into tomorrow, reaching speeds of 600 kilometres per second or faster and bringing a higher chance of aurora to UK skies.
It added: “The auroral oval is expected to be enhanced through 12 March through until early 14 March due to geomagnetic storms.
“Aurora is likely to be visible from Scotland and similar geomagnetic latitudes.”
The aurora borealis, or Northern Lights, are a phenomenon caused by electrically charged particles from the Sun’s surface colliding with the Earth’s atmosphere.
Normally only visible in the most northern areas of the UK, the display has been seen further south in recent years.
Its visibility peaked in 2024, which saw the biggest geomagnetic storm since 2003.
Those in high altitude areas such as Scotland, the north of England, the north of Wales and Northern Ireland have had the clearest displays.
However, many people have managed to see the lights all over the UK last year.
The phenomenon has been an integral part of many different nation’s folklore.
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Vikings in Scandinavia believed that the lights were a sky bridge connecting Gods with the Earth, while Inuits believed the lights offered the power to speak to dead relatives.
Since the Sun is in its “solar maximum” phase, we’re likely to see the greatest level of solar activity now for 11 years.
After that, it will enter its minimum phase and sightings will decrease so head outside tonight for a chance to spot the lights while you can.
What are the Northern Lights?
KNOWN as the aurora borealis in the northern hemisphere, the Northern Lights are caused by activity on the surface of the Sun.
Solar storms on the star’s surface release huge clouds of electrically charged particles.
Some of these particles, which can travel millions of miles, eventually collide with the Earth.
While most are deflected away, some become captured in the Earth’s magnetic field, accelerating down towards the north pole into the atmosphere.
This is why most of the aurora activity is concentrated at the magnetic north pole, with the equivalent aurora australis occurring near the magnetic south pole.
Royal Observatory Astronomer Tom Kerss explained: “These particles then slam into atoms and molecules in the Earth’s atmosphere and essentially heat them up.
“We call this physical process ‘excitation’, but it’s very much like heating a gas and making it glow.”
Therefore, what we are seeing is atoms and molecules in our atmosphere colliding with particles from the Sun.
The aurora’s characteristic wavy patterns and “curtains” of light are caused by the lines of force in the Earth’s magnetic field.
These stunning displays typically reach a low of 80 miles above the Earth’s surface.
However, the top of their reach could extended several thousand miles above the Earth.
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