Tomato factory lights mistaken for 'lovely aurora'

A woman says she was "slightly disappointed" after mistaking the bright colourful lights of a nearby tomato factory for a mystical aurora.

Dee Harrison, 56, of Ipswich, uploaded three images to social media of what she believed was a Northern Lights-style phenomenon in the sky above nearby Bramford.

The pictures, showing a pink and red glow, piqued the interest of hundreds of people, with many praising the "impressive" snaps, but all was not as it seemed.

The "beautiful" glare - seen early in the morning on Wednesday - actually came from Suffolk Sweet Tomatoes’ LED light units, which are used to encourage the growth of its stock.

Mrs Harrison said: "It was about 05:15 BST and I was driving along Paper Mill Lane and could see to my left the sky was red.

"At first I thought something was on fire but when I parked up I could see this deep pink sky - it looked brighter through my phone camera so I thought it was an aurora.

"But it wasn’t unfortunately, so I was a bit disappointed because I thought I was up early seeing this aurora and I had it all to myself.

"I have driven that way for over two years and this was the first time I had seen it - it’s funny how I haven’t noticed it before."

The aurora faux pas comes just a couple of weeks after the real Northern Lights were once again spotted across the UK, following a similar sight back in May.

They have been particularly visible in 2024 due to the biggest geomagnetic storm since 2003, according to Sean Elvidge, a professor in space environment at the University of Birmingham.

One of the social media users who pointed out the lights were actually coming from the Great Blakenham tomato factory was 34-year-old Adam Cotterell.

He lives two miles away in Somersham and said he could often see the sky light up in a colourful glow "in the right weather conditions".

"Since the tomato factory has been there you have always been able to see a red and pink hue in the sky when there is mist or fog in the air," he added.

"It is most apparent in the winter months on a cold foggy night, not so much through the summer months because the summer air is dry.

"But as we are now coming into winter you will see it more with the damp evening air and low lying mists.

"It's still an interesting sight to see, but it won't beat the true aurora like the one back in May – that was an incredible night."

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