Northern Lights? Which Northern Lights? Brits complain they couldn’t see the dazzling Northern Lights despite a ‘once in a lifetime opportunity’ (although their phones managed to capture the spectacle in vibrant colours!)
If you struggled to catch a glimpse of the Northern Lights this weekend, you’re not alone.
Social media users are sharing their frustration at not being able to see the spectacle, which was the result of an intense solar storm last week.
Meanwhile, others have noted that they were only able to notice the array of colors after taking a photo of the sky with their smartphone.
One person wrote on
Another wrote: ‘I couldn’t see the Northern Lights unless I used my phone’s night mode with the camera.
Brits are complaining they couldn’t see the dazzling aurora pictured in New Brighton, Merseyside, on Friday evening
Many skygazers were only able to spot the aurora after taking a photo of the sky with their smartphone
‘Something to do with the amount of colors our eyes can perceive at certain light levels.’
According to experts, a long exposure on a smartphone camera – where it is exposed to light for longer than normal – can better capture the spectacle.
American photographer Dave Morrow said: ‘If the aurora is moving very quickly across the sky and you take a photo with an exposure time of 30 seconds, instead of seeing the instantaneous image that your eyes see, your camera will actually pick up the entire movement . of the aurora across the sky during that 30-second window.”
The Met Office also says that with a good quality camera, people can capture vivid images of the aurora, even if it is not visible to the naked eye.
Another wrote: ‘I couldn’t see the Northern Lights unless I used my phone’s night mode with the camera’
‘The naked eye couldn’t perceive colors the way the camera did’: Photographers have generally had more success seeing the screen through their device
The most powerful solar storm in more than two decades hit Earth, causing spectacular skylight displays from Tasmania to Britain. Pictured are people gathering on Parliament Hill on Hampstead Heath
‘Cameras help because the long exposure lets in a lot of light and enhances the colors more than the human eye can see,’ a Met Office spokesperson told MailOnline.
‘That’s why you sometimes see pictures as far south as Cornwall, even though it’s unlikely you’ll ever be able to see it that far south with the naked eye.’
However, due to the intensity of the solar storm, some people may have seen the aurora with the naked eye.
Lemuel Lyes, a New Zealander living in Cornwall, posted on X: ‘Never before have I seen such an aurora image that is so visible to the naked eye.
‘What a miracle.’
The Northern Lights in Denbighshire, Wales, Saturday evening
Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis) illuminate the sky of San Francisco North Bay as seen from China Camp Beach in San Rafael, California
David Kelham Smith, professor of chemistry at the University of York, caused controversy by suggesting that seeing the aurora through a phone is not an ‘authentic experience’.
He posted on
‘What *is* an authentic experience anyway?’
One furious user replied: ‘Yes, you saw the aurora.
‘The greater sensitivity of the phone’s sensor and long exposure extend it beyond the reach of the eye, and also beautiful phone photos made for a truly magical Friday night shared experience, so away with your technophobic clickbait b****** *.’
Auroras are typically only seen in countries near the poles, such as Norway and Iceland in the north.
The weekend’s aurora (which produced many beautiful photos) was caused by a solar storm classified as G5 – the most ‘extreme’ rating with aurora as low as Florida and North Africa.
Seeing this weekend’s aurora was called a ‘once in a lifetime opportunity’ by ITV meteorologist Chris Page.
But according to Royal Observatory Greenwich, the last G5 solar storm occurred in October 2003, but other experts are hopeful that another such productive aurora event will occur soon.
David Kelham Smith, professor of chemistry at the University of York, caused controversy by suggesting that seeing the aurora through a phone is not an ‘authentic experience’
The Sun is currently in a period of ‘solar maximum’, which means that expulsions from the Sun’s surface are most common.
After another solar storm in the coming days, even more auroras could be visible late this week or early next week.
“Solar storms are notoriously difficult to predict and the aurorae that accompany them are also complicated,” said Gray Brown, astronomer at the Royal Observatory Greenwich.
‘Predicting the next solar storm with any accuracy is virtually impossible.
“However, there are signs that another storm is approaching in the coming days, which could strengthen the aurora again.”
WHAT ARE AURORAS AND WHAT TRIGGERS THE BEAUTIFUL NATURAL VIEWS?
The Northern and Southern Lights are natural light spectacles that are activated in our atmosphere and are also called the ‘Auroras’.
There are two types of Aurora: Aurora Borealis, which means ‘dawn of the north’, and Aurora Australis, ‘dawn of the south’.
The displays light up when electrically charged particles from the sun enter the Earth’s atmosphere.
There are two types of Aurora: Aurora Borealis (file photo), which means ‘dawn of the north’, and Aurora Australis, ‘dawn of the south’. The displays light up when electrically charged particles from the sun enter the Earth’s atmosphere
Usually the particles, also called a solar storm, are deflected by the Earth’s magnetic field.
But during stronger storms, they enter the atmosphere and collide with gas particles, including hydrogen and helium.
These collisions emit light. Aurora displays appear in many colors, although light green and pink are common.