Millions of Brits celebrating New Year’s tonight could make the event even more special after a powerful solar flare could allow people to see the northern lights.
The aurora borealis will be viewable across huge portions of the UK tonight, the Met Office has revealed, as a huge coronal mass ejection (CME) strikes the Earth.
Usually, the Northern Lights can only be seen in the auroral oval – a ring of light that encircles the polar caps.
But the Sun is currently in its ‘solar maximum’, or the most active part of its 11-year cycle, which means it is more likely to release powerful flares more often.
This has led to an increase in displays of the northern lights, as the Sun’s eruptions interact with the Earth’s atmosphere to create stunning displays in the night sky.
‘The auroral oval is likely to remain at background levels initially,’ the Met Office explained.
‘However, from 31 Dec, a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) is forecast to arrive at Earth with a risk of G1-G2/Minor-Moderate geomagnetic storms which could produce visible aurora across Scotland, Northern Ireland and parts of northern England.’
Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) are large expulsions of plasma and magnetic fields from the Sun’s corona, also known as a solar flare.
Most of the recent CMEs have been considered far-sided, meaning they won’t strike Earth.
However, astronomers have discovered one heading our way which could spark Northern Lights just in time for New Year’s Eve- potentially even appearing alongside firework displays this evening.
In terms of timings, the Met Office predicts that the Northern Lights will peak over the UK at around 21:00, although they may still be visible until around 3am tomorrow morning.
‘A filament eruption (arc of plasma) was observed in imagery within the vicinity of a sunspot region located in the southeast quadrant,’ the Met Office explained.
‘This produced a partial halo CME, which has been analysed as potentially being Earth-directed, with an expected arrival at Earth on Day 1 (31 Dec).’
The north of England, Scotland and Northern Ireland are the locations best primed to see the northern lights this evening, but could be scuppered by heavy rain and strong winds forecast in those regions tonight.
For the best chance of seeing the spectacle, wait for clear skies to get dark and then go outside, ideally away from bright city lights.
Taking a picture with a smartphone camera may also reveal hints of the aurora that aren’t visible to the naked eye.
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