Northern Lights illuminate Falkirk district skies

The aurora borealis were visible locally, as well as across many parts of Scotland, last night with many sharing their pictures across social media.

The natural phenomenon put on a show for those looking to the skies, which were perfectly clear.

Stargazers were also able to catch a glimpse of the Perseid meteor shower which was at its peak on Monday night when up to 100 shooting stars could be visible.

The Northern Lights have made more regular appearances in the UK over the last few months with the moving patterns of green, blue, purple and red caused by solar storms on the surface of the sun creating clouds of electrically charged particles that are forcefully expelled.

Some of these particles collide with the Earth, with some becoming caught in the planet’s magnetic field, where they are attracted to the north and south poles. This collection of particles collide with atoms and molecules already present in the atmosphere, heating them up and causing them to glow – creating the Northern Lights.

Ruby Adam captured this image in Denny in the early hours of Tuesday morning. Did you see the aurora on Monday? We’d love to see your photographs.