Northern Lights to be visible in Irish skies again tonight
10th May, 2024.Northern Lights illuminating the Irish skies on Friday and were visible since midnight. Captured in Newport town, County Tipperary. Credit: Karlis Dzjamko
Many Irish stargazers were lucky enough to witness a rare occasion on Friday night - as the Northern Lights lit up the sky in much of the country.
The display, which was visible since around midnight on Friday, illuminated Irish skies, with many taking to social media to document the delight.
And, in some good news for those who missed it the first time, Met Éireann has confirmed the phenomenon should be visible again tonight.
Meteorologist Siobhán Ryan warned that there is a potential for clouds to obstruct the view in some areas, but said in some areas, there may be "better visibility". Speaking to RTÉ, she said that the best chance to see the aurora will be in early evening and early night.
The Northern Lights occur in the Arctic area “practically every night,” but as far south as Ireland, we “only experience them about 1% of the time", according to Astronomy Ireland founder David Moore.
Aurora Borealis are caused by radiation that comes from the sun.
The visibility of the Northern Lights was increased on Friday because of an “extreme” geomagnetic storm, according to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
The NOAA said the G5 geomagnetic storm, which is considered extreme and is the strongest level of geomagnetic storm, hit earth on Thursday and could affect communications, GPS and power grids.
The cause of this storm is a “large, complex” sunspot cluster and is 17 times the diameter of earth, with the last storm with a G5 rating hitting earth in October 2003, causing power outages in Sweden.
The NOAA said the lights could be seen as far south as Alabama and southern California in the US.
Friday night provided the perfect conditions for stargazers, who were not impeded by any clouds, which could have blocked the view.
Speaking ahead of Friday, Mr Moore said, we could have a “big aurora, and a clear sky” once clouds don’t roll in, and he says, “it’s going to be incredible.”
A preview for a time lapse I have in the works for later.
— Sryan Bruen Photography (@sryanbruenphoto) May 11, 2024
What an insane show last night! This was at Ballynafagh Church, Kildare.#ireland #auroraborealis #northernlights pic.twitter.com/91R2SgZYVL
#northernlights #auroraborealis #drogheda #ireland pic.twitter.com/dh54uRr1yA
— tinmac (@tinmacc) May 10, 2024
The northern lights as far south as Killarney!!
— Paul S (@PaulSpCork) May 10, 2024
Not a full on lights show but still mesmerising & a privilege to see#NorthernLights #Ireland pic.twitter.com/PPZjW0uNGt
