It was announced that a large coronal mass ejection from the sun could create the possibility of viewing the Northern lights across the UK as far south as the Cotswolds. With this being too good an opportunity to miss I ventured into the Peak's and searched around to find a good spot. I decided on the area at the top of Winnats Pass overlooking Mam Tor. It was a beautiful evening with mostly clear skies and amazing views of the stars, but with the moon being in its first quarter this did add to some unwanted light. I waited patiently (along with many others! I have never seen so many people around at 1.30am in the Peak District) but according to the space weather reports, the solar storm was not as strong as expected and the solar winds were not blowing in a favourable direction. Although disappointing that they never showed up it was satisfying to know that if they did, I was waiting to capture them with my camera. Some reports state they may be visible tonight but I wont hold my breath, even though I do hope they will. Fingers crossed.
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