An "unbelievable" and "rare" aurora display was visible in certain parts of the country last night.

Kenneth McDonagh from the Donegal Weather Channel and Aurora Alerts Ireland said the aurora "filled the whole sky" at Rosses Point in Co Sligo.

"The whole northern horizon was just green and it went so high as well - nearly 30 to 40 degrees high in the sky," he said.

"Green bands just come towards you and then all of a sudden you see massive bright pillars above your head," he added.

He said last night's occurrence was particularly rare as it lasted for hours.

He added that hundreds of people watched from Rosses Point.

Mr McDonagh has been "hunting" for the Northern Lights for almost 20 years.

He explained that the cause of the phenomenon starts at the sun, where unstable areas of the star explode in solar flares.

This launches out charged particles or plasma from the sun.

Travelling at extraordinary speed, this plasma can reach earth in about two or three days where it interacts with the magnetic field.

When a solar flare causes a "coronal mass ejection" or CME, experts can then determine if there's a potential for an aurora.

"If we see a coronal mass ejection, we have a good idea if it is going to be earth directed and whether it will side swipe us or be a direct impact. Last night was a direct impact," he said.

Mr McDonagh said another CME has just hit.

"You can imagine another CME on top of last night will only buffer up conditions and there's a potential for another significant aurora," he added.

We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences

Mr McDonagh said he wants to share his knowledge of auroras with others so they can experience it on "their own doorstep".

He said there has been a lot of solar activity recently and this will increase in the coming years.

He said there is the potential for auroras "a couple times a month".

However, Mr McDonagh warned that the event is weather permitting as clouds can easily obstruct views.

Alan O'Reilly from Carlow Weather said he was 'absolutely shocked' by images of the Northern Lights captured by his drone last night.

"Some low greens and some high red lights. It was the most amazing image I've ever taken.....It was amazing to see it so far South," he said.

Mr O'Reilly said the lights were not so easy to see with the naked eye but that he also captured some wonderful images on his phone.

Speaking on Morning Ireland, he said this was the strongest display seen here in a long time.

Mr O'Reilly said there is another possible chance for people to see the Aurora Borealis between 9 and 11pm.

However he warned the cloud cover could be a problem later.

"It'll be pot luck whether you manage to get a break in the cloud tonight and it's never guaranteed," he said.