Stunning photos of Northern Lights over Barry and Penarth

Stunning photos from Barry Island to Culverhouse Cross show the Northern Lights over the county in all their glory.

Sy Lennox took stunning photos including one with the famous Knap Gardens in shot.

The Northern Lights over Barry (Image: Sy Lennox)

The lights at the Knap (Image: Sy Lennox)

Jack Ollier also caught incredible photos from the Island.

Just some extraordinary shots - this one on the Island (Image: Jack Ollier)

Richard Beard caught stunning shots from Porthkerry Park

Richard Beard at Porthkerry Park (Image: Richard Beard)

Majestic (Image: Richard Beard)

Julia caught the glory of the lights in Colcot.

Northern Lights above Colcot (Image: Julia)   

In Penarth, Neil Chadwick caught a great photo.

Neil Chadwick caught the colours in Penarth (Image: Neil Chadwick)

And Lawrence Mears caught a truly magical shot across Culverhouse Cross

A great shot across Culverhouse Cross (Image: Lawrence Mears)

What are the Northern Lights 'Aurora Borealis'

The natural phenomenon is caused by electrically charged particles from the Sun travelling millions of miles getting caught in the Earth’s magnetic field.

These particles accelerate down towards the north and south poles into the atmosphere, which essentially heats them up and creates the effect.

The different colours in the atmosphere are caused by different gases burning as part of this process with green being characteristic of oxygen while hints of purple, blue or pink are caused by nitrogen.

The natural phenomenon is caused by electrically charged particles from the Sun (Image: Sy Lennox)

Skies across South Wales lit up by brilliant Northern Lights

Skies across South Wales were lit up in a brilliant pink and green from the Northern Lights last night.

The rare spectacular display was captured in Caerleon, Abertillery, Cwmbran, Chepstow, Ebbw Vale and the Griffithstown area of Pontypool.

Hannah Faulkner called the spectacle "absolutely beautiful” as her daughter Aleshia-May, 11, took some beautiful pictures of the stunning display from their back garden in Six Bells, Abertillery.

Photo taken by 11-year-old Aleshia May in Abertillery (Image: Aleshia May)

Barry one of the best places to see the stars in Wales

Barry is one of the best places to see the stars in Wales according to new research conducted by Millets.

The research reveals Barry as the fifth choice location for stargazing and full moon watching within the nation.

The stargazing ranking in Barry is 6.39/10, higher than Bridgend and Caerphilly which both rank a 5.94/10.

The light pollution level is 1.56 mcd/m2, indicating less disturbance to a clear sky view compared to bright cities such as Cardiff.