Forget the Northern Lights – how to spot the even rarer Southern Lights

THE Northern Lights are one of the most famous natural phenomena in the world.

But did you know there is something even rarer called the Southsun?

3

3

Tourists often travel to Norway and Iceland to see the Northern Lights, with tours and excursions to see the lights.

While not always guaranteed, they are easy to spot depending on the day.

But further afield are the Southern Lights, also known as the Aurora Australis.

They are found throughout Australia and New Zealand and are very similar in pink, purple and green.

They are best seen between May and August and in a dark area of ​​the sky with little light pollution.

Tasmania in Australia has some of the best places to see the lights, with opportunities to see them all year round, as well as Stewart Island and Lake Tekapo in New Zealand.

Other places include Patagonia, Argentina and even Antarctica.

Last month, Australians were stunned by the light show, which was unusual to see anywhere in Perth

Scott McDonald told local media: “It’s not often that you see the southern lights so strongly and to see it 125km north of Perth in Western Australia was just as crazy and will be hard to sleep tonight. What a rush.”

There is little difference between the various auroras other than their location, and the aurora are often easier to see.

The amazing natural light show is caused by electrically charged particles from the sun striking gaseous particles in our planet’s atmosphere.

This solar flare is often accompanied by a coronal mass ejection — a huge ejection of plasma from the Sun’s outer layer — triggering a geomagnetic storm that carries the aurora to lower latitudes.

The solar storms cause bright, colorful dancing lights of white, green, pink, and purple to light up the sky.

The aurora’s most common color is green, formed when oxygen molecules react with the particles about 60 miles above the ground, while nitrogen causes a blue or purple hue.

Fortunately, while you have to walk quite a distance to see the Southern Lights, you can sometimes see the Northern Lights in the UK.

Last month, Britons across Norfolk and even Kent spotted the famous light show.

3