How and when to see the Northern Lights in Britain TONIGHT: Aurora will be visible as a massive coronal mass ejection hits Earth

As 2024 draws to a close tonight, millions of Brits will have their eyes trained skyward in search of fireworks.

But all New Year’s Eve shows will pale in comparison to nature’s greatest light show.

The Northern Lights will be visible across large parts of Britain this evening, the Met Office has revealed.

The lights, also known as the Northern Lights, will appear when a massive coronal mass ejection (CME) hits Earth.

Normally, the Northern Lights can only be seen in the aurora oval – a ring of light surrounding the polar caps.

However, the Met Office predicts they could be visible much further south this evening.

“The aurora oval will likely remain at background level initially,” it explained.

‘However, it is forecast that a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) will hit Earth from December 31st with the risk of G1-G2/Minor-Moderate geomagnetic storms which could produce visible auroras across Scotland, Northern Ireland and parts of North -England.’

The sun is in the maximum phase of its existence 11 year cyclemaking sunbursts and northern lights more common.

Numerous coronal mass ejections (CMEs) have been observed leaving the solar surface in the past 24 hours alone.

“Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) are large expulsions of plasma and magnetic field from the Sun’s corona,” NOAA explains.

‘CMEs travel outward from the Sun at speeds ranging from slower than 250 kilometers per second (km/s) to almost 3000 km/s.

“The fastest Earth-targeted CMEs can reach our planet in just 15 to 18 hours.

“Slower CMEs may take several days to arrive. They grow larger as they propagate further from the Sun, and larger CMEs can reach a size that covers almost a quarter of the space between Earth and the Sun by the time it reaches our planet.”

Most CMEs over the past 24 hours are considered distant, meaning they will not impact Earth.

However, astronomers have discovered one heading our way that could ignite the Northern Lights just in time for New Year’s Eve.

“A filament burst (plasma arc) was observed in images near a sunspot region in the southeastern quadrant,” the Met Office explained.

‘This produced a partial halo CME, which has been analyzed as possibly being aimed at Earth, with an expected arrival at Earth on Day 1 (December 31)’.

Here in Britain, the Northern Lights could be visible in Scotland, Northern Ireland and parts of northern England.

In terms of timing, the Met Office predicts that the Northern Lights will peak over Britain around 9pm, although they could still be visible until around 3am tomorrow morning.

Unfortunately, the weather forecast for tonight doesn’t look great, which could derail your plans to see the Northern Lights.

The Met Office is predicting heavy rain and strong winds in parts of Scotland, Northern Ireland and northern England, plus some snow in parts of Scotland.

In the US, colorful auroras They are predicted to appear in Alaska, Washington, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine.

Parts of Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, Iowa and New York may also get a piece of the view.

For the best chance of seeing the spectacle, wait until the clear sky darkens and then head outside, ideally away from bright city lights.

Taking a photo with a smartphone camera can also reveal hints of the aurora that aren’t visible to the naked eye.

The sun’s active period is expected to last at least another year, although scientists won’t know when solar activity peaked until months later.

Astronomers are watching this week’s solar storms for possible minor disruptions to high-frequency radio communications, which are used by airlines and amateur radio operators.