Today could not have been more of a contrast with yesterday – cloudless blue skies for most of the day, enough cloud by the afternoon for an impressive sunset then a clear sky during the evening offering a lovely view of the moon and nearby Jupiter.

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Albion (n): A traditional personification of England, also the oldest known name for the country, derived from the Greek language.

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Sunrise (n): The point each day when the sun appears over the horizon, the witnessing of which is a once-a-year event on this blog.

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Eventide (n): A somewhat archaic word for the onset of evening.

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Sombre (adj): Subdued, low-key, serious or grave.

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Thermosphere (n): The part of the earth's atmosphere in which auroras occur.

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Light pollution: A phenomenon in which excessive artificial light levels produce consequences for astronomy, ecosystems and potentially human health.

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Aerial (adj): Of the air or atmosphere.

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November (n): The last month of autumn; also the eleventh month of the Gregorian calendar, taking its name from its previous placing as the ninth month of the Roman calendar.

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Livid (n): A dark bluish-grey in colour.

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Troposphere (n): The lowest layer of the earth’s atmosphere and the place where clouds form.

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Inky (n): Dark like ink, or resembling an ink stain.

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Streak (n): A horizontal or vertical ray of light, a line or stroke, a conspicuous blot of colour on an area that is predominantly a different colour.

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Cumulus mediocris: A sub-species of cloud that forms at low levels.

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Geoluhread (n): An Old English word once used to refer to the colour orange.

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Afterglow (n): Light visible in the sky after sunset as twilight proceeds, usually due to dust or other particles in the atmosphere.

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Last night, there was a large-scale solar storm, bringing the promise of possible aurora sightings further south than is usually even imaginable. It is one of my lifetime ambitions to see the Northern Lights – but, as someone who lives not much more than 50 degrees north, I have to accept that I’m highly unlikely to fulfil it on my own doorstep.

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Skein (n): A collective noun for geese in flight.

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Lens flare: A photographic term for visual effects caused by unwanted light in the camera mechanism.

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Condensation (n): A process describing water moving from a gaseous to a liquid state, important in cloud and vapour trail formation.

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