Northern Lights: What is Steve and why is it different to an aurora borealis?

Published 1 hour ago



BBC WEATHER
Ribbon of purple light during an aurora event known as Steve captured in Argyll by Weather Watcher 'R Westerman'

By Simon King & James Gregory
BBC Weather and BBC News

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The thin, purple ribbon, which was seen glowing in the sky in Northumberland, County Durham and Argyll, is a relatively new scientific discovery.

Steve is not an aurora but is often associated with its better known cousin, the aurora borealis - or Northern Lights - which was also captured across parts of the UK on Sunday.

The much rarer Steve has appeared in the pictures BBC Weather were sent from their Weather Watchers.

It has been photographed for decades but only got the name Steve in 2016, following a US citizen science project funded by Nasa and the National Science Foundation.

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