Northern lights dazzle the skies for photographers

Photographers across the West Midlands were spurred into action on Sunday night by a spectacular display of the northern lights.

An aurora "red alert" was issued by a sudden spike in solar activity as the lights were seen across the UK, from Scotland to Cornwall.

In one case, Andrew Fusek Peters said he waited in temperatures of 1C at Hopton Castle, near Craven Arms, Shropshire, for the display but "it was worth it".

While Instagram user midlands_night_sky, also in Shropshire, called it a "fantastic night" after they grabbed an image.

Andrew Fusek Peters said he was waiting at Hopton Castle, Shropshire, from sunset in the cold to get a photo of the lights

Activity on the Sun has been increasing over the last few years and BBC Weather says it is expected to peak this year which means the aurora becomes more frequent.

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The spike in solar activity lasted until 21:00 GMT but there were still some reports of the aurora even after that.