Sky gazers in Europe were in for a surprise when the northern lights turned the night sky red, green, and purple in many countries on Sunday. Pictures posted online showed the night sky in vivid shades of red, green, and magenta over most parts of Europe.
The so-called "aurora borealis" also bathed swathes of Russia, Ukraine, Siberia, and the Urals in green, scarlet, and purple overnight.
"Tonight had the strongest Northern Lights I've ever seen! I'm chasing them now for nearly 6 years on almost every winter night, but I have never seen the oxygen red as strong to the naked eye before," an X (formerly Twitter) user from Norway wrote on the platform.
Tonight had the strongest Northern Lights I've ever seen! 🤯🤯🤯
— Max Wernerson 🧃 (@welloffthetrack) November 6, 2023
I'm chasing them now for nearly 6 years on almost every winter night, but I have never seen the oxygen red as strong to the naked eye before 😳 pic.twitter.com/jPpP6DjVTB
"What a day - and night - we've had in Orkney ... Blazing sun by day and blazing aurora tonight!," another user said on X.
What a day - and night - we've had in #Orkney ... Blazing sun by day and blazing #aurora tonight! Only came in because I'm practically hypothermic now... Mesmerising #northernlights #merriedancers #scotland #northernisles pic.twitter.com/vRc3uBwX0H
— Sue Dyke (@archaeoselkie) November 4, 2023
A user also shared pictures of the northern lights on Bosnian and Croatian skies.
Northern Lights over Stonehenge last night 😍✨#aurora #auroraborealis #northernlights #stonehenge
— Stonehenge U.K (@ST0NEHENGE) November 5, 2023
Photo credit Stonehenge Dronescapes on FB 👏👏👏 pic.twitter.com/aFh2XWOME5
#Northernlights #auroraborealis on Bosnian and Croatian Sky: pic.twitter.com/xM9IaaSRO5
— Science Duchess 🧬🔭💉🥽⚗️🦠🧪🛰️👠💄🔧🦩 (@zrnopameti) November 5, 2023
The Northern Lights in Norway are absolutely breathtaking. pic.twitter.com/vueuvYmO7l
— Fancied Facts (@FanciedF) November 5, 2023
How are northern lights generated?
The northern lights are generated by streams of charged particles from the sun which penetrate the earth's atmosphere and collide with gas molecules which then release photons of light.
They most frequently occur near the North Pole.
Whitley Bay tonight 🤩 #aurora #northernlights #northeast #whitleybay pic.twitter.com/Cndl2LViKt
— Geordie_Hiker (@geordie_hiker) November 5, 2023
According to a report, the northern lights are expected to be stronger this year than for at least a decade due to a surge in activity in the sun.
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