Aurora borealis seen over France and Switzerland after solar storm on Saturday
A solar storm that caused a geomagnetic storm produced northern lights over parts of France, Belgium and Switzerland on Saturday evening, 10 October. Displays were faint in Switzerland and partly hidden by clouds.
Sightings across France and neighbouring countries
Aurora borealis were seen on the evening of Saturday 10 October 2026 in France and neighbouring countries. BFMTV reported sightings in several departments, notably Normandy, where the sky over Marchésieux in the Manche turned pink, and at Robertot in Seine-Maritime. Violet and magenta lights appeared at Gombergean in Loir-et-Cher, while lighter displays were seen in the Hauts-de-France and the Hérault. In Belgium, the lights were seen notably in the Liège region.
Solar storm behind the display
BFMTV links the aurora to a solar storm that triggered a geomagnetic storm. Citing the Greenwich Observatory, it says solar storms send out clouds of charged particles that can travel millions of kilometres, and some of them can collide with Earth. Earth's magnetic field captures a minority of these particles, which concentrate near the magnetic poles and excite atoms and molecules in the atmosphere. Oxygen produces green or red light, while nitrogen produces blue and violet. Meteo Schweiz says the particles can take about one to five days to reach Earth.
The Alpine space weather centre, Coméa, posted on X on Saturday with a warning about the plasma:
The plasma reached Earth two hours ago and the intensity is higher than forecast.
Switzerland
The lights were faint in Switzerland but visible at numerous places on Saturday evening and appeared on several Meteo Schweiz webcams. Meteorologist Daniel Gerstgrasser confirmed the phenomenon on X:
Currently a weak but clear aurora over Switzerland!
A reader photographed the lights over the Jura during the night to Sunday. He said they were hard to see with the naked eye but visible through a camera. SRF reported that clouds hid the display in many places, with larger gaps in the western regions, such as at Galmiz (FR).
Colours and conditions
Aurora colours depend on the atmosphere and the altitude at which the display occurs, according to 20 Minuten. Meteo Schweiz explains the link between solar wind and colour:
The more energetic the solar wind, the more colourful the polar light.
According to 20 Minuten, the colours indicate the height of the light and the atom with which the solar wind collides.
