Northern lights display one of the best, Manx photographer says

The lights could be clearly seen in Peel

Photographers on the Isle of Man have captured the northern lights in "one of the best displays for many years".

Ron Strathdee said he initially thought his camera was "acting up" when he took his first photo in Port Erin because of the bold red colours.

The natural phenomenon, which can create a vibrant display of greens and reds, is seen when particles from the sun enter the Earth's atmosphere.

More displays are expected in the coming nights.

The Aurora Borealis is most commonly seen between December and March

The vice chairman of the Isle of Man astronomical society Howard Parkin said the northern lights were "one of the most fantastically beautiful natural phenomena" that could be seen.

He said that even though they could be "elusive", the displays could be impressive on the Isle of man because of it's "good northern horizon view".

"The sky dances... with moving columns of different colours," he said, adding: "It's mind-blowing and makes you speechless."

The Aurora Borealis were seen as far south as Kent and Cornwall on Sunday night.

The lights could also been seen in Port Erin

Mr Strathdee described the display as "one of the best for many years" because the phenomenon usually only glows shades of green in the south, but instead he was able to capture "so much red" in his photographs.

But the photographer said people hoping to see the lights over the coming nights should not be disappointed if the colours do not appear as vividly to the naked eye.

"It is sensitivity of the camera and it's settings that pick up the colours," he added.

More displays are expected in the coming nights