Northern Lights: Stunning timelapse video shows Aurora Borealis as Met Office predicts when they will return

A stunning timelapse shows the Aurora Borealis as it dazzled British skies, early on Saturday 11 May, 2024. Greg Wolstenholme captured the incredible natural phenomenon during the solar storm, as the colourful Northern Lights played out above a Blea Tarn, a valley in the lake district. The photographer has shared more of his spectacular images on his Facebook and Instagram pages.

When will the Northern Lights return to the UK?

If you missed the rare phenomenon of the Northern Lights last week, fear not, as there's a chance they may make a return to certain parts of Britain this week. Although there is a likelihood that it may not be quite as dazzling as last time, the forecasters say there remains a “slight chance” of glancing Coronal Mass Ejection impacts overnight on May 17 into May 18 in the Northern Hemisphere.

Forecasters told the Sun: "These may bring some limited enhancement to the aurora, with the slight potential of allowing for some visibility as far south as northern Scotland or similar latitudes.” This comes following an alert from AuroraWatch UK, which is run by scientists in the Space and Planetary Physics group at Lancaster University’s Department of Physics.