The Met Office says that there are “incoming Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs)” which may bring an enhancement of the aurora.
It is reported that the Aurora Borealis may be visible further south due to this.
If you want to catch a glimpse of the Northern Lights, here is everything you need to know, including the best places to see them and how best to spot and photograph them.
You can see the full forecast via the Met Office.
Northern Lights may be visible in London
The Space Weather forecast from the Met Office reads: “Incoming Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) which left the Sun on October 3 and 4 may impact Earth from October 6 onwards.
“This may bring an enhancement with chances of visible aurora for the next couple of nights across Scotland, and possibly further south, dependent on cloud cover.”
The Met Office predicts little cloud coverage in the early evening, but this may get thicker as the evening progresses and goes into the early hours of tomorrow.
What causes the Northern Lights?
The Royal Museums Greenwich explained: “Solar storms on our star’s surface give out huge clouds of electrically charged particles. These particles can travel millions of miles, and some may eventually collide with the Earth.
“Most of these particles are deflected away, but some become captured in the Earth’s magnetic field, accelerating down towards the north and south poles into the atmosphere. This is why aurora activity is concentrated at the magnetic poles.”
Royal Observatory astronomer, Tom Kerss added: “These particles then slam into atoms and molecules in the Earth’s atmosphere and essentially heat them up.
“We call this physical process ‘excitation’, but it’s very much like heating a gas and making it glow.”
Top tips for spotting the Northern Lights
Iceland is one of the world’s prime spots for viewing the Northern Lights, located near the Arctic Circle.
However, it can also be viewed across parts of the UK during periods of strong space weather conditions.
Expert Gísli S. Brynjólfsson, director of global marketing at Icelandair , said September to March is peak viewing time, due to the days being the darkest and shortest, translating to “northern lights peak viewing time”.
Expert Brynjólfsson adds: “Generally, 9pm until 2am is considered peak time.
“The lights also tend to get more visible as the night goes on, so the show can be a long but extremely rewarding one.”
If you are looking to spot the Northern Lights, it is best to do it away from light pollution, in places such as beaches and country parks.
How to take the best pictures of the Northern Lights
Icelandair has also shared some top tips on the best iPhone settings to use to capture the best pictures of the Northern Lights.
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Enable night mode on your device (this usually appears in a low-lit setting as an icon in the top left corner next to the flash)
- Turn off the flash setting
- Enable max. exposure by tapping the arrow at the top of the screen to open the settings menu, which will appear at the bottom. Here, you’ll find the exposure setting, represented by the night mode icon
- Tap the +/- icon in the same menu to adjust the exposure level to a negative value. Finding the correct setting will take some trial and error, but -0.7 is a good starting point
- Rotate your iPhone horizontally to capture a wider image. Try to keep your hands as still as possible or consider using a tripod to avoid any blurry images
Between 9pm and 2am is the peak time you can expect to see the Northern Lights.
