People across Ireland and Britain experienced something rather special as they turned their eyes to the heavens last night - a rare glimpse of the Northern Lights.

Irish Twitter users in the north of the country tweeted spectacular images of the Northern Lights casting their eerie glow over stunning scenery.

Spectacular red and green lights of the Aurora Borealis lit up skies as far south as Gloucestershire, Essex and Norfolk last night, the result of a strong magnetic storm.

The lights were clearly visible in Glasgow, Orkney and Aberdeenshire in Scotland, at Preston in Lancashire and in Whitley Bay, North Tyneside.

The bright dancing lights known as the aurora borealis are caused by charged particles colliding in the Earth’s atmosphere.

They are seen above the magnetic poles of the northern and southern hemispheres.

Many different colours can be seen, with green and pink being the most common, but red, blue and yellow are also possible.

The rare red aurora seen last night across the UK is caused by high-altitude oxygen, which can be as high as 200 miles.

Electrons and protons are hurled from the sun’s atmosphere and are blown towards the earth by the solar wind.

Often these particles are then deflected by the earth’s magnetic field but as it is weaker at either pole, some particles enter the earth’s atmosphere and collide with gas particles, causing the light display.

Usually the best spots to see the lights are those places close to the North Pole, such as Iceland and Norway.

In the southern hemisphere they are known as the Aurora Australis and often can be mirror-like images that occur at the same time as the north.

Additional reporting: PA