On the night of 10 October 2026, we headed out on a celestial adventure to photograph an incredible display of the Northern Lights, and what an evening it turned out to be!
✨ Our celestial adventure
Aurora chasers around the world had been awaiting the arrival of solar wind from a coronal mass ejection (CME). By early afternoon on 10 October, the solar wind readings were looking very promising. If those conditions held until nightfall, we knew we could be in for something special.
We alerted our followers to the possibility of a display, prepared our camera gear and headed out as darkness approached.
Our first stop was just north of Scarborough. Even before twilight had fully faded, the aurora was dancing high in the sky. Stepping out of the car, we could see a bright glow to the north and rays stretching upwards, with hints of green and red visible to the naked eye.
Through our cameras, the colours were even more striking. A vivid green band was arcing across the sky, with beautiful reds, pinks and towering rays above it. We shared a quick livestream to let our followers know it was worth heading out, and to share a little of the magic with anyone watching from home.
Next, we moved to another location to photograph the aurora above Scarborough. The activity had become a little weaker, but the green arc remained visible to the naked eye, even through the town’s light pollution.
With things becoming a little quieter, we decided to head to Whitby to capture the Northern Lights above the beautiful ruins of Whitby Abbey, just as we did on 10 October 2024. On the way to Whitby, we could see the aurora’s bright arc from inside the car. We also spotted a beautiful owl flying beneath the aurora-lit sky.
When we arrived, we set up two cameras to record timelapses. Shortly afterwards, the display burst into life again. Bright colours and rays stretched high above the abbey, creating a truly magical scene.
Our cameras kept running for more than two and a half hours, capturing the changing display. Eventually, the activity faded and the solar wind readings looked less encouraging, so we headed home to warm up.
After a little rest, we took our doggos, Luna and Selina, out on a night-time walk near Scarborough Castle. We also managed to capture one more photograph we had planned, which we’ll share in a separate post.
We captured thousands of photographs throughout the evening and will share some of them once we’ve had time to go through them. For now, we’ve put together some of the best moments in this timelapse of the aurora dancing above Whitby Abbey. We hope you enjoy watching it as much as we enjoyed being there.
📸 Share your stories and photos
We always love hearing about your celestial adventures and seeing your photographs.
We’ve already received lots of photographs of this Northern Lights show, and it makes us so happy that so many of you managed to catch this spectacular display.
If you caught this display, please share your stories and photos with us on our socials. We’d love to see the view from where you were!
🔭 Join our aurora evening at Sherwood Observatory
If this display left you wanting to learn more about the Northern Lights, why not join us for our special aurora evening at Sherwood Observatory on Saturday 14 November 2026 at 8pm?
We’ll be exploring the history and mythology of the Northern Lights, the science behind this magical natural light show, and practical tips to help you improve your chances of seeing and photographing the aurora.
The talk will be followed by a film in the observatory’s impressive 10-metre planetarium. Then, weather permitting, we’ll finish the evening with a chance to observe distant deep-space objects through its incredible 24-inch telescope.
Spaces are limited. Find full details and book your place at our Sherwood Observatory aurora evening.
If you can’t make the Sherwood event, don’t worry! We hope to run more aurora events and stargazing experiences in the future, so keep an eye on our website for updates.
☀️ Looking out for more aurora activity
The Sun has been quite active recently, so there is potential for further aurora activity in the near future. Keep an eye on our socials for updates and alerts about possible displays.
🌠 Clear skies
All in all, it was a magical evening of spectacular Northern Lights. We’re so pleased that so many of you got to experience this display, and we hope this timelapse brings a little of that magic to anyone who may have missed it.
As always, wherever your next celestial adventure takes you, we wish you good luck and clear skies! 💖
