Pictured: Luton Airport worker captures Aurora Borealis over Bedfordshire

A LUTON Airport worker has captured an incredible image of the Aurora Borealis in the skies over Bedfordshire.

Aprill Harper, 45, from Blunham, said she is ‘thrilled’ with the image which shows the phenomenon as it appeared last night (October 7) in all its green and purple glory.

Aprill said: “I must admit I was actually one of the 14.5 million people watching Great British Bake Off. But I receive alerts about astrological activity and as soon as the show finished I rushed outside with my camera.

“I took the shot in Blunham Playing Field, which is right behind my house.

“Conditions have to be perfect in order to see anything – especially where we are – so I was thrilled to get such a good picture.”

The Met Office says there are a number of factors that need to come together and the Northern Lights have to be very strong to reach Bedfordshire. Cloudy conditions can hamper any light headed our way and things like streetlights can affect how clear the display is to the naked eye.

Aprill began taking pictures of astronomical phenomena after she bought a camera to start a new photography hobby. When her husband bought a telescope, she says she became ‘hooked’ on the skies.

Now she runs the Bedfordshire Astrophotography and Photography Facebook page and is also a founder member of the Sandy Astronomical Society, which meets once a month.

The 45-year-old, who works for Thomson Airways, added: “You don’t always see something interesting but I am just in the habit of always looking up.”

To take the photo, Aprill placed her camera on a tripod, and took the photo over a 13 second period.

“I also increased the aperture to let as much light in as possible, and set the ISO to 1000,” she said.

Explaining how the Auroras form, she said: “The lights are caused by solar activity which excites our atmosphere. This can cause disturbed weather and storms.

“If the flare is earth facing, we see the Aurora Borealis about three days after it happened in space. But it is really exciting to see this over Bedfordshire.”

There is still a chance we may see yet more activity in the skies this evening.

The Met Office spokesperson added: “There’s a lot of cloud around Bedfordshire tonight but the early part of the night is patchy so you just need a bit of luck to get a break in the clouds.

“You just need clear skies, be able to get away from artificial lights and to look at a dark sky.

“You stand more of a chance in Bedfordshire than the Western side of the country which is expected to be very cloudy.”

The best time to see the Northern Lights will be at least half an hour after sunset, 9.44pm tonight, and away from artificial lights. Let your eyes grow accustom to the dark and then look towards the north.

Sandy Astronomical Society is now in discussions to hold a monthly stargazing session at Blunham Playing Field.

To find out more visit sandyastronomicalsociety.moonfruit.com/ or follow @SandyAstroSoc on Twitter.

Have you taken a fantastic picture of the Aurora Borealis? Send your pictures