Northern Lights: 4 of the best apps to help you spot the Aurora as Met Office issues verdict

• Increased solar activity could mean Northern Lights are visible yet again.
• The Met Office’s Space Weather service issues a verdict on chances for UK residents to see the lights. 
• Android and Apple users can get apps to help track the aurora.

The Northern Lights could be set to put on a spectacular show in parts of the country this week. The Met Office has advised that increased solar activity means that there is a chance of spotting aurora borealis in the coming days.

Delivering its verdict, the Met Office said: "The auroral oval may become enhanced... from the impact of a Coronal Mass Ejection. Aurora sightings may become visible in Scotland, although impeded by limited hours of darkness."

If you are hoping to catch sight of the auroras, but don’t want to spend all night peering out the window like a curtain twitcher, you might be wondering what apps are available to help. A range of free and paid downloads can help you track the latest updates and forecasts. 

My Aurora Forecasts & Alerts - free

With a 4.7 star rating on the App Store and a similarly high 4.6 star rating on Google’s Play Store, this is one of the highest rated Aurora apps. It has such features as a list of the best places to view the aurora from right now, the current KPI index showing how likely you are to see the Northern Lights. 

It also features forecasts for the next hour, several hours and several weeks, giving you a comprehensive outlook. If the weather is not ideal where you live it also has live aurora webcams so you can still see the lights around the world - albeit through your phone screen. 

The app is available for free and was developed by JRustonApps B.V. Download it from the Play Store or App Store by clicking those links. 

My Aurora Forecast Pro - £2.99 

A paid version of the popular My Aurora Forecasts app, also developed by JRustonApps B.V. It costs £2.99 in a one time fee. 

The Pro version offers all of the same features as above, but without any advertisements. If you are looking to avoid ads when using the app, then perhaps consider the Pro version instead of the free option. 

The paid version has a 4.8 star rating on the App Store . Apple users can purchase it here, while Android phone owners can get it on the Play Store.

Aurora Watch (UK) - Free 

Another app for UK based aurora spotters to consider is this app, which is available on the Play Store. It has a 4 star rating from Google users and over 100,000 downloads. 

The app offers alerts about increases in geomagnetic activity - triggered when the AuroraWatch status level changes; this indicates the relative likelihood of viewing an aurora in the UK. See the current alert status and also catch up on the last 24 hours of alerts. 

Users can also get a 30 minute forecast model from SWPC. You can get the app on Google’s Play Store here.

AuroraWatchUK Aurora Alerts - Free 

For Apple users, you can get this Aurora alert app from the App Store on your iPhone/ iPad. It has a 4.8 star rating based on 24.5k reviews and is currently ranked number 8 in weather apps on the store. 

It is run by scientists in the Space and Planetary Physics group at Lancaster University’s Department of Physics. Alerts are configurable within the app to different levels, so you will know when to look out for aurora wherever you are.

You can get data from the last 24 hours, receive real time alerts to your device and monitor the UK’s current geomagnetic activity. It can also provide a map showing the current aurora and cloud cover. 

Download the AuroraWatchUK from the App Store here.

Were you lucky enough to spot the Northern Lights earlier this year when they were visible in parts of the UK? Share your experience