Northern Lights visible across the Netherlands tonight

People across much of the Netherlands will have a prime opportunity on Sunday night to view the Northern Lights. Waves of red, purple and even some green light could be seen across the sky as early as 6:15 p.m. in some parts of the country.

There were clear skies expected periodically on Sunday as the electrically-charged particles expelled from the Sun collides with the Earth’s atmosphere. This generates the famous Northern Lights, which can only periodically be seen in the Netherlands.

Noorderlicht? Foto's genomen in Boxmeer vanavond rond 18u15, richting het noorden #poollicht #Aurora #Auroraborealis #Boxmeer #noorderlicht #noorderlichtjagers pic.twitter.com/aTwdqa9IEO

— Pierre Gielen (@GielenPierre) November 5, 2023

This should be visible to the naked eye on Sunday, whereas other times it is only visible through a camera lens. A dark sky is ideal, compared to brighter urban areas, or areas with greenhouses lit up by artificial light.

"People often only find out the next morning that the Northern Lights were visible the night before, and complain that they were not warned. Now we can warn those people in advance,” said meteorologist Philippe Schambergen in an interview with RTL Nieuws.

Additionally, skywatchers should not be disheartened if the Lights do not appear immediately, because they come and go in waves. "So don't give up immediately if you don't see anything, but just keep watching for half an hour."

Met dank aan @Anatidaephbia zijn we meteen op zoek gegaan naar het #noorderlicht, en wat hebben we genoten! 😍 #yerseke pic.twitter.com/yQ2s4U8dy7

— Evelien Buné ☮️🌺🏳️‍🌈🌱 (@evelienepien83) November 5, 2023