13 hours ago
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The northern lights are expected to be visible in Scotland this weekend, the Met Office has said, with a chance of sightings further south.
Sightings of the aurora borealis, a naturally occurring light display caused when electrically charged particles from the sun collide with atoms and molecules in the Earth’s atmosphere, are possible over northern Scotland “and potentially over much of Scotland where skies remain clear” on Saturday night and into Sunday morning, according to the latest “space weather” forecast.
Sky gazers further south could also glimpse the display “with long exposure photography”, the Met Office added.
Through this evening and overnight, aurora sightings are possible over northern Scotland and potentially over much of Scotland where skies remain clear ✨
There is perhaps a chance further south too, with long exposure photography 📷 pic.twitter.com/V8WpEqiFml
A Met Office meteorologist, Zoe Hutin, said there is a “heightened chance” of seeing the phenomenon due to the low cloud coverage and clear skies in Scotland.
She said the movement of solar winds around the sun at this time is leading to the “enhanced possibility of a sighting”.
She added: “The farther north you are, the more likely the chances are that you will be able to see them.”
The weather service’s latest space report suggests people who are stargazing at high latitudes are likely to see the aurora overnight into Sunday and, to a lesser extent, on Sunday night into Monday morning. “This is due to the onset of fast winds,” the report stated.
The northern lights were spotted in numerous places in the UK and farther south than usual last year. This is because the sun is thought to be at the peak of its 11-year cycle of activity. As a result, events known as coronal mass ejections – when the sun spews out plasma, a super-hot gas of charged particles – are occurring more often, offering more opportunities to see the auroras.
