People across the UK will have the rare opportunity to catch a sighting of the Northern Lights this evening, on the final night of 2024.
The Met Office has said a coronal mass ejection left the sun early on December 29 and is expected to arrive on New Year’s Eve.
The Northern Lights, also known as the Aurora Borealis, is a natural light display in the Earth’s sky which is typically seen in high-latitude regions, such as around the Arctic and Antarctic, but it is sometimes visible here in the UK.
The auroras display an impressive pattern of lights that cover the night sky and often appear as rays of green or faint red.
The Met Office has said that New Year’s Eve is expected to be cloudy across much of the UK, but some clearer spells are forecast in the east of Scotland, northeast England and Northern Ireland.
According to the national forecaster, the best time to spot the Northern Lights in these locations is between 6pm and 9pm.
The Met Office said: “Although the Northern Lights may be in place, visibility could hamper any sightings. [Tuesday] night is expected to be cloudy across much of the UK, though there could be some clear spells in the east of Scotland, northeast England and Northern Ireland from around 18:00 to 21:00.
“These will likely be transient though with cloud and rain around for many, especially in Northern and Western Scotland.”
To increase your chances of seeing the Northern Lights in the UK you can try using an aurora app, such as AuroraWatch or My Aurora Forecast, which notifies you the chances of seeing them are high.
It is also worth using your phone camera to see them as some say it’s easier to view them through a camera lens than with the naked eye.
And if you don’t have any other New Year’s Eve plans, you could visit a Dark Sky Reserve as these have low levels of light pollution which makes them ideal for viewing the Northern Lights.
Some locations around the UK include Northumberland National Park, Snowdonia National Park, the Brecon Beacons National Park, Cairngorms National Park, the Lake District National Park, the Isle of Skye and Derwentwater.