Northern lights create a dazzling display across Türkiye's skies
Zülal Atagün - ISTANBUL
The northern lights, or aurora borealis, illuminated the skies over multiple cities in Türkiye's Marmara and Black Sea regions in vivid shades of red, green and violet in a rare display after the most powerful solar storm hit the earth.
A solar explosion on the surface of the sun that occurred on Nov. 5 resulted in the release and diffusion of plasmas, eventually reaching and filtering into Earth's atmosphere, causing what some scientists refer to as a geomagnetic storm, an atmospheric phenomenon.
This solar wind led to the appearance of auroras, which are generally witnessed near the North Pole, in northern regions of America and Europe.
Numerous people in Türkiye captured the rare and colorful spectacle late on Nov. 5 and early Nov. 6 sharing their photographs on social media. The most widely shared image, both in local media and on social platforms, was taken by fishermen in Kırklareli.
"We had gone fishing from Kıyıköy to Kastro around 8:10 in the morning. That's when I noticed the red lights in the sky. Not knowing what it was, I took pictures of it. Friends who were fishing off İğneada also called me. They saw the northern lights, too," Berkay Yatkın said.
Dr. Hasan Ali Dal, an associate professor at Ege University's Department of Astrophysics and the director of the Astronomy Observatory in the university, stated that this phenomenon will continue throughout the week, predicting that it will occur more frequently in the next three years.
"The number of solar eruptions on the sun's surface fluctuates in an 11-year cycle. According to this cycle, we will reach the peak of this period in 2025-2026. Then, we will enter a decreasing phase. However, these eruptions can sometimes be quite intense," Dal explained.
"For example, a large solar eruption occurred a week after the earthquake on Feb. 6 [in Türkiye’s south], causing power outages and disruptions in radio and TV broadcasts in Brazil for two days. In another eruption in 1989, Canada was left without electricity, television and radio for two weeks."
Academic Selçuk Topal from Van Yüzüncü Yıl University cautioned that not all images shared on social media with the caption "Northern lights seen in Türkiye" may be accurate.
"Not all of the images on social media may be authentic. However, the probability of them being seen in cities in the north, such as Tekirdağ, is higher. This was an expected event, but it occurred a bit earlier than anticipated. We expect its frequency to increase in the coming year. Nonetheless, there is no cause for concern."
Meanwhile, the Turkish Space Agency also confirmed the sighting of the northern lights in the country.
