site.btaStrong Solar Flare Makes Northern Lights Visible from Bulgaria

A strong solar flare made northern lights visible from Bulgaria in the early hours on Friday, BTA learned from Pencho Markishki, a physicist at the Institute of Astronomy with the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences.

The scientist said: "The sky above the northern horizon glowed red, which was not easy to see with the naked eye but registered clearly enough in photographs taken even with a phone." He photographed the northern lights from the Astronomical Observatory in Belogradchik (Northwestern Bulgaria) shortly after midnight.

The phenomenon could be observed from less illuminated areas after clouds over parts of the country cleared early in the morning, Markishki said.