Stunning Northern Lights display possible over North Wales tonight
The Met Office has said there is a chance of seeing the northern lights over North Wales tonight and perhaps tomorrow too. If the weather[1] continues to play ball, today’s clear skies could be the prelude to a stunning celestial display.
Minor geomagnetic storms are likely in the coming hours, accompanied by a series of coronal mass ejections (CMEs), according to the Met Office’s Space group. As electrically-charged particles enter the Earth’s upper atmosphere at high speed, we could see them appearing as the Northern Lights[2].
Met Office Space tweeted: “There’s an increased chance of aurora visibility overnight on 20 and 21 of April. Minor geomagnetic storms are likely with the forecast arrival of a coronal mass ejection.
“There’s a low chance of moderate or strong storms. Aurora could be visible where skies remain clear across Scotland, and potentially as far south as Northern Ireland, as well as northern areas of England and Wales.”
At present, Met Office[4] expects geomagnetic storms to reach “Active to G1/Minor Storm levels” due to the anticipated arrival of CMEs. However there is a “low risk” the could reach “G2/Moderate or G3/Strong Storm conditions”.
Given the current forecast, visible aurora are “likely” across Scotland and possible over Northern Ireland and much of northern England. For North Wales and central England, the prospects of seeing aurora are lower.
Met Office Space had a “geomagnetic storm watch” notification in place from 4am this morning (Thursday, April 20). This is set to remain in place until midday on Friday.
Weather forecasts suggest aurora visibility will be at its highest between 9pm tonight and 2am Friday morning. There is also a chance of seeing the Northern Lights on Friday night as well, said the Met Office.
To see them, the clouds will need to stay away. You’ll need to find a dark location with no light pollution, and look to the northern skies.
If you do, there’s a chance you may also see shooting stars. The Lyrid meteor shower is active between April 15-29, peaking on Friday, April 21. On this date, about 18 meteors per hour will be visible with the naked eye, travelling at speeds of around 47km (29 miles) per second.
To spot them, NASA advises: “Find an area well away from city lights or street lights. Come prepared with a sleeping bag, blanket, or lawn chair. Lie flat on your back with your feet facing east and look up, taking in as much of the sky as possible.
“After about 30 minutes in the dark, your eyes will adapt and you will begin to see meteors. Be patient – the show will last until dawn, so you have plenty of time to catch a glimpse.”
References
- ^ weather (www.dailypost.co.uk)
- ^ Northern Lights (www.dailypost.co.uk)
- ^ Petition demands return of resort’s once sandy beach that is now a ‘dangerous blight’ (www.dailypost.co.uk)
- ^ Met Office (www.dailypost.co.uk)