Skip to content

Northern Lights stun UK down to England's south coast

Joe Coughlanand
Chris Fawkes,Lead Weather Presenter
News imageBBC Weather Watchers / Jonny Gios An image of the sky in Kendal, Cumbria, on 10 October during the evening. The Northern Lights can be seen in a pink and green hue alongside a bare tree trunk and branches in the foreground of the image.BBC Weather Watchers / Jonny Gios
Kendal in Cumbria paid host to the breathtaking scenes on Saturday

Residents across the UK were left stunned as the sky was illuminated by the spectacular colours of the Northern Lights on Friday and Saturday evenings.

The natural phenomenon, known as the Aurora Borealis, is the result of increased solar activity.

Such occurrences are mostly visible near the Arctic Circle and northern Scotland, but particularly strong activity levels meant they could be seen as far south as Devon, Hampshire and Kent on Saturday night.

The Met Office has said sightings could continue to be possible during clear skies until Tuesday.

News imageBBC Weather Watchers / Simon Luckman 1988 An image of the sky in Winterton-on-Sea, Norfolk, on 9 October during the evening. A pink haze can be seen towards the horizon.BBC Weather Watchers / Simon Luckman 1988
The phenomenon was visible as a pink haze in Winterton-on-Sea, Norfolk, on Friday
News imageBBC Weather Watchers / Isle Explorer An image of the sky in Owston Ferry, North Lincolnshire, on 10 October during the evening. The Northern Lights can be seen in a purple hue alongside silhouettes of a tree, telegraph pole and roadsign.BBC Weather Watchers / Isle Explorer
Owston Ferry in North Lincolnshire was graced by a stunning purple haze
News imageBBC Weather Watchers /ChelseaPhil An image of the sky in Herne Bay, Kent, on 10 October during the evening. The Northern Lights can be seen in shades of yellow and pink above an urban skyline and several trees.BBC Weather Watchers /ChelseaPhil
Sightings stretched to Herne Bay in Kent

Northern Lights are caused by powerful solar eruptions from the Sun, called coronal mass ejections (CMEs).

Towards the end of last week, the Sun was observed to unleash CMEs directed towards the Earth.

This stream of charged particles can get captured by the Earth's magnetic field and directed into our atmosphere, especially towards polar regions.

When these charged particles collide with oxygen and nitrogen, photons of coloured light are emitted - this is the aurora.

News imageBBC Weather Watchers / Sarah n Essie An image of the sky in Saltburn-by-the-Sea, Redcar and Cleveland, on 10 October during the evening. The Northern Lights can be seen in a pink and green hue alongside five people standing on a walkway at the bottom of the image.BBC Weather Watchers / Sarah n Essie
Revellers were able to take in a mix of green and purple in Saltburn-by-the-Sea, Redcar and Cleveland
News imageBBC Weather Watchers / Hol An image of the sky in Stenness, Orkney Islands, on 10 October during the evening. The Northern Lights can be seen in a pink and green hue with clouds visible above a skyline of houses.BBC Weather Watchers / Hol
Stenness on Scotland's Orkney Islands served as a strong location for the phenomenon
News imageBBC Weather Watchers / Hannah and Ben An image of the sky in Holmwood, Surrey, on 10 October during the evening. The Northern Lights can be seen in pink, blue and green colours above several houses and trees.BBC Weather Watchers / Hannah and Ben
The sky was illuminated in Holmwood, Surrey

The chances of seeing the aurora vary across the UK depending upon its strength. When activity levels reach 200nT (nanotesla) the aurora would be visible in the north of the UK, but not the south.

On Saturday evening, those levels reached 600nT, meaning it would be visible across the whole of the UK, even in the south, which is a much rarer phenomenon.

Experts have previously said 2026 will be a peak year for aurora-spotting as the Sun has been in a heightened state of activity as part of its 11-year natural cycle.

News imageBBC Weather Watchers / Carolyn R An image of the sky in Salisbury, Wiltshire, on 10 October during the evening. The Northern Lights can be seen in a pink hue above a bright horizon and what appears to be water reflecting the sky at the bottom of the image.BBC Weather Watchers / Carolyn R
A purple glow could be seen across the sky in Salisbury, Wiltshire on Saturday
News imageBBC Weather Watchers / Rick1 An image of the sky in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, on 10 October during the evening. The Northern Lights can be seen in a pink hue above a bell tower and green plants below.BBC Weather Watchers / Rick1
North Yorkshire did not miss out on the action, as shown here in Scarborough
News imageBBC Weather Watchers / Rockdodger An image of the sky in Gourock, Inverclyde, on 10 October during the evening. The Northern Lights can be seen in a variety of pink, blue and green hazes above clouds and the city.BBC Weather Watchers / Rockdodger
An array of pink, blue and green could be seen in Gourock, Inverclyde

If you missed out this time, the aurora may return on Sunday.

The Met Office has said sightings remain possible across Scotland and similar geomagnetic longitudes during clear skies until Tuesday.

To see them, you need to look northwards, away from bright streetlights, and look through a mobile phone camera.

The reason you need to use a camera is because in low-light conditions at night our eyes use rod cells to see - these cells do not perceive colour and so we actually see in black and white. Cameras do not have the same limitations.