Northern lights could be visible in Manchester and the north after solar flare

The northern lights may be visible across the UK, including Manchester, later this week after a powerful solar flare erupted

A powerful solar flare could potentially trigger northern lights displays later this week.

This follows a coronal mass ejection (CME) on May 10 — a vast expulsion of plasma and magnetic field from the Sun’s corona. These events can eject billions of tons of coronal material and carry an intense magnetic field.

The eruption broke out at 1.13pm on Sunday and is now rotating into Earth’s “strike zone” on the Sun’s northeastern edge. Any significant solar flares or CMEs will have a greater likelihood of being directed towards Earth as this region comes into view over the coming days, reports the Express.

The Met Office says part of the expanding plume of solar material could brush past Earth around May 13 – in just two days’ time. This could set off minor geomagnetic storm conditions, boosting the northern lights across the UK and northern US.

The northern lights are visible in the UK on multiple occasions throughout the year, particularly during periods of heightened solar activity, with 2026 being a peak year.

While best observed in Scotland and high-latitude areas every few months, powerful solar storms can occasionally make them visible across the whole of the UK, including the south, between September and March.

They were last spotted in the UK during intense displays on 23-24 March 2026, with notable sightings reported further south across the country earlier in the year.

The breathtaking displays are produced by solar activity, whereby charged particles from the Sun’s atmosphere travel through space as solar wind and collide with gases in Earth’s upper atmosphere. These impacts energise oxygen and nitrogen atoms, which then emit energy in the form of vivid, luminous colours.

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