Northern Lights display amazes East Lancashire residents

The rare phenomenon wowed people across the county and residents were quick to get outside and see the stunning display of pink and green lights.

People across the region were out braving chilly conditions to snap incredible photographs of the aurora borealis late on Thursday night.

Shot taken over Darwen Tower (Image: Shafiq Khan)

Those who missed last night's display still have a chance of witnessing the light show with AuroraWatch UK giving a red alert for a likely storm this evening.

Light clouds will be covering East Lancashire but it will clear at around 1am, with this being the best opportunity to catch the aurora.

Usually only seen towards the Arctic Circle, the light show was visible here due to an extreme geomagnetic storm.

The sun has been at its maximum of its 11-year solar cycle this year which is why there have been so many sightings of the Northern Lights across the UK.

Spotted in Blackburn, Padiham, Belthorn, Accrington, the Ribble Valley, Oswaldtwistle and Prestwich the stunning pink, purple, green and red lights put on an amazing display.

Photographers flocked to popular beauty spots in East Lancashire to catch a glimpse of the lights, best seen in dark settings away from light pollution, but were also visible much closer to home despite street lights.

Spectacular images taken in Belthorn (Image: Kim Bury) Some particularly amazing photos were taken near Belmont with strong streams of red and green silhouetting against a tree.

One display captured over in the Ribble Valley was particularly exciting for her young Klayton, who was gutted to miss them earlier in the year, his mum Samantha Brown said.

Klayton and sister Kasey were over the moon to see the event in the Ribble Valley (Image: Samantha Brown) Mum Samantha said: “It was because over the summer my daughter had seen the lights but my son went to bed, so he didn't see them, so he has been gutted he didn’t see them ever since.

“I was reading they could be out tonight, and he was over the moon when he saw them last night.”

Met Office spokesperson Stephen Dixon said there was a chance of some visible auroras across the UK on Thursday and his prediction did not disappoint.

He said: “When it does reach Earth, there are likely aurora sightings in Scotland and Northern Ireland, with a chance of some sightings in the north of England and slightly further south.

“The further north you are, the more likely you are to get good visibility.”

Thanks to clear skies and enhanced activity from the sun reaching Earth the display was more dramatic.

Aurora displays occur when charged particles collide with gases in the Earth’s atmosphere around the magnetic poles.

In the northern hemisphere, most of this activity takes place within a band known as the aurora oval, covering latitudes between 60 and 75 degrees.

When activity is strong, this expands to cover a greater area – which explains why displays can be occasionally seen as far south as the UK.