Britons stayed up all night to catch a glimpse of the Northern Lights as a massive solar storm brought a beautiful aurora to the skies above the UK.
In rare and spectacular sightings on Friday night, the aurora was spotted across the country, from Whitley Bay in the North East to as far south as Kent and Hampshire.
The Northern Lights, also known as aurora borealis, were seen in Essex, Cambridgeshire, Berkshire, Suffolk, and Liverpool.
The stunning light show came as the most powerful solar storm in almost 20 years hit Earth on Friday night.
Space weather experts said buffeting solar wind is colliding with our planet’s magnetic field, triggering strong aurora at more southerly latitudes than normal.
The scale of the geomagnetic storm heading to Earth is the largest in two decades and the effects will likely last several days.
The Northern Lights are set to be visible until dawn on Saturday, but may appear (in places with clear skies and not thunderstorms) on Saturday night too.
The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) warned on Saturday morning that the “extreme” geomagnetic storm is classed as a G5 – the strongest level of space storm – and could affect communications, GPS and power grids.
People up and down the UK took to social media to share their images of the Northern Lights.
Kathleen Cunnea, in Great Horkesley, Essex, said: “It was absolutely stunning to see.”
Dr David Boyce, a science teacher in Rutland, shared that he was telling himself not to cry as the aurora lit up the sky above him and wasn’t sure if he was having a “religious experience” or going through “an alien abduction”.
Some of the most striking photographs from the UK were taken on beaches in the north, at Crosby Beach in Liverpool and Whitley Bay in Tyne and Wear.
At Whitley Bay the aurora lit up St Mary’s Lighthouse in a remarkable display.
People flocked to Crosby Beach, where they were joined by Antony Gormley’s Another Place sculptures.
Gormley’s installation, which was finished in 2005, consists of 100 cast iron statues facing out to sea and provided a striking eeriness against the backdrop of the aurora.
The phenomenon was seen across larges parts of Europe too, with stunning images captured in Germany, Switzerland and the Czech Republic.
The aurora also reached the US, where the NOAA said the lights could be seen as far south as Alabama and southern California, while they were also seen in Oklahoma and Missouri.
Sightings were also reported as far away as Tasmania in Australia.
Met Office spokesman Stephen Dixon said on Friday that people in the UK could get another glimpse of the Northern Lights on Saturday.
“Those conditions could continue on Saturday night but we still have to work out some details on where exactly that will be.”
The sightings have reached Ireland too, with the Irish weather service Met Eireann posting images of the lights in Dublin and at Shannon Airport in Co Clare.
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.