Met Office explains mystery of green glow of 'Northern Lights' captured over Bristol

Mystery surrounds a green glow which has been photographed over the Bristol skyline.

In one picture taken from Shirehampton, looking towards Bristol Airport, a vivid swathe of bright green and yellow can be seen in the cloudy sky.

Jane Youden, who took the photo, had been to Iceland only last month to try to catch sight of the Northern Lights.

Mrs Youden said she decided to take a photo as the phenomena shows up much more clearly in a long exposure image than it does to the naked eye.

"I didn't expect to take a photo and to see it," she said.

"It was just a complete shock. We were then gobsmacked for the next hour or so as it just sort of slightly changed shape."

Ms Youden says she took the photo on her phone, and the only edit made has been to crop it.

Although sightings of the Aurora Borealis at this latitude are rare, it is possible to witness the stunning natural light show in the UK as far south as Pembrokeshire and Devon.

But while it may look like the Northern Lights in the photograph, the Met Office told ITV News it is more likely just light being reflected from the ground.

The implausibility of the sighting both perplexed and delighted Ms Youden, who said: "Even in Iceland, it's not guaranteed that you'll see it. But you've got to have a clear sky.

"And we didn't have a clear sky yesterday; it was actually really cloudy.

"And [in Iceland] they take you right down into pitch back, but there was light pollution about and it was really thick dark cloud.

"It's just very weird. It would be nice if someone could verify it or give another explanation."

When ITV News asked the Met Office to examine the photo, the forecaster said there were no storms in the area at the time meaning it was not the Northern Lights.

They added: "There was low cloud, mist and fog around Bristol so the most likely explanation is lights from the ground being reflected in the clouds, which isn’t uncommon in the UK."

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