Police called in after HUNDREDS of cars stranded as stargazers flock to see aurora

Would-be astronomers arrived in droves at the historic hill to try and catch a glimpse of the aurora on Saturday after the solar phenomenon had lit up Britain’s night sky the day before.

After the Met Office had predicted the lights would reappear on Saturday, hundreds made the trip up Castle Hill – but as the sun set, the aurora dimmed, leaving crowds disappointed.

When jilted locals returned to their vehicles to leave, the sheer amount of cars in attendance rendered a swift departure impossible.

Drivers trying to go home were faced with near-hour-long delays – prompting police to arrive to help smooth the traffic flow.

One person who had visited told Yorkshire Live: “We went to see the lights and noticed Castle Hill was busier than usual.

“On arriving, we met up to 100 cars battling to get a space in an already full car park.

MORE AS THE AURORA SWEEPS BRITAIN:

“We struggled to get out and were stuck in traffic for 40 minutes – the police turned up to help traffic.

“People were getting annoyed with the amount of cars there.”

Another disgruntled would-be stargazer took to social media to voice his frustration, saying: “I’m up at Castle Hill with the eldest – there’s nothing.”

He added that he estimated around 100 people were at Castle Hill, jabbing: “There’s b***er all activity in the skies!”

The spectacles over Friday – and, to a lesser extent, Saturday – marked a highly unusual change from the norm, where the lights are only visible around the poles, where the Earth’s magnetic field is strongest.

But over the weekend, a barrage of electrically-charged particles from the sun colliding with the Earth’s magnetic field led to an even greater display than normal.

In the northern hemisphere, the Northern Lights – or aurora borealis – could be seen as far south as northern Italy – a far cry from their usual domain in the “aurora oval” of latitudes between 60 and 75 degrees.

While in the southern hemisphere, the Southern Lights – or aurora australis – were visible from parts of southern Australia; usually, those down under can only expect to see the phenomenon in Tasmania at best.