Starry Nights: The northern lights shine brightly and this is the perfect place in the UK to explore the galaxy

Postpone that trip to Iceland or Upper Norway in the hope of seeing the Northern Lights, as the so-called Aurora Borealis put on a show as far south as Cornwall this week.

And astronomers predict more of this over the coming years as the Sun becomes more active.

Still, you have to choose your spot, and your chances of witnessing this glorious phenomenon are greatly increased if you head to Northumberland Dark Sky Park – one of the largest parks with a protected night sky.

When I checked into the Twice Brewed Inn, an inn by Hadrian’s Wall near Hexham, for a night of stargazing, the sky was the clearest it had been in two weeks and our guide, astronomer and photographer Wil Cheung, was very upset .

The pub, frequented by walkers throughout the summer, has set up a planetarium and taken over the services from Wil.

During my visit, about 30 of us got to 12 powerful telescopes within a ten minute walk. We caught a glimpse of the rare comet, the one-kilometer-wide E3 (ZTF), 26 million miles away, which had not been seen for 50,000 years and would never return to Earth’s orbit. And we saw Jupiter set with three of his 92 moons; the Orion Nebula; Sirius, the brightest star in the galaxy; and the beautiful Andromeda galaxy, just 2.5 million light years away, with its 1,000 billion stars. As an unexpected treat, there were three shooting stars.

Later, in the planetarium, we had a 30-minute presentation revealing details of our global space exploration (narrated by Rupert Grint, of Harry Potter fame).

Inspired at the age of seven by watching Sir Patrick Moore ramble on about the galaxy on TV, Wil wants to instill a love of the universe in people. “I hope tonight is the beginning of your stargazing journey,” he said.

We didn’t actually see the Northern Lights that night, but we learned a lot about them. An aurora is created by a solar flare that erupts on the Sun, sending off charged particles that interact with our atmosphere to create the beautiful shades of green and red that some were lucky enough to see this week.

Twice Brewed Inn in Northumberland, frequented by walkers in the summer, has installed a planetarium (pictured above).

Later, my friend Victoria and I joined another couple over a few cognacs to reflect on all we had seen.

“It’s been on my wish list for years,” says Helen from Leeds. “I’m so grateful that I finally came here. The night was amazing. Not only the comet can be seen, but also three shooting stars. I feel like doing it all over again.’

The inn itself is rustic, with uninterrupted views of the rolling countryside. And the staff is almost as passionate about stargazing as Wil Cheung. “It gave the place a special dimension,” the bartender told me. “And it’s very popular.”

I believe it. “Does anyone suddenly feel small?” Wil asked us a good question at the end of the evening. The vast night sky can make you feel very small, and that’s okay.