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Glasgow Live
Glasgow Live
National
Jennifer Russell

Northern Lights visible in Scotland this weekend - here's when to see it

It's not every weekend you could be in with a chance of spotting the Northern Lights right on your doorstep.

But this weekend will see a solar storm head its way to Earth, which means the aurora borealis may be visible in Scotland.

The Met Office said the phenomenon, will peak on Saturday until 9pm.

Skies in Glasgow are forecast to be cloudy on Saturday night, but there could be breaks long enough to reveal the lights.

Loch Lomond is a favourite for star gazers hoping to catch a glimpse of the light show, so you're best heading out of the city.

 

The Northern Lights are created by disturbances in Earth's magnetosphere caused by a flow of particles from the Sun, and are usually concentrated around the Earth's magnetic poles.

The southward shift of the lights on Saturday is caused by an ejection of plasma, known as a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) from the Sun, which followed a solar flare on Wednesday.

Bonnie Diamond, meteorologist at the Met Office, said: "A Coronal Mass Ejection has happened and the effects of that are expected to arrive later tomorrow evening.

(Getty Images)

"This type of active geomagnetic storm means that there is the possibility of the aurora borealis, commonly known as the Northern Lights.

"Whether or not you will see the Northern Lights depends on where you are and what the weather is like. Scotland is where you're most likely to see it.

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"There's a couple of showers on the west coast of Scotland on Saturday evening, and with those showers there will be a bit of cloud.

"However, the clearest skies are further east in Aberdeenshire, where there are plenty of clear skies. Further north, you're pretty likely to see something."

The Met Office's Space account tweeted: "CME forecast to arrive late 23rd March following C5 flare from sunspot AR2736. Active-minor geomagnetic storm periods possible with low risk of moderate storms.

"As a result, aurora may be visible in Scotland where cloud breaks. Latest forecast available".

Don't forget if you do spot the Northern Lights near Glasgow send us your pictures to news@glasgowlive.co.uk.

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