The skies are still dark and there's a biting nip to the air but that can only mean good things for Scotland's aurora hunters.

The Met Office predicted clear spells across the north on Wednesday night into Thursday, hopefully continuing to make for good viewing conditions of the Northern Lights tonight in certain parts of the country.

Otherwise known as the Aurora Borealis, the spectacular natural phenomenon could put on a show in the winter skies above Scotland if conditions remain right.

Autumn and winter seasons, with their long periods of darkness and the frequency of clear nights, are often the best time of the year to experience the auroral displays. Nights need to be cold and the sky clear of clouds, with limited light pollution and increased solar activity.

Although cloud cover will set in across the country tonight, some Scots could be in with a lucky chance of seeing them glow.

As always, it is best to check with groups such as Aurora UK before setting out.

The dance of colours, patterns and lights, caused by the different effects of space weather on Earth mean the lights can appear as large areas of shimmering pale green, pink, yellow, blue and violet in the direction due north.

Named after the Roman goddess of dawn, during a weak aurora the colours are very faint and spread out whereas an intense aurora features greater numbers and brighter colours which can be seen higher in the sky with a distinct arc.

This week, geomagnetic activity is expected to increase due to a minor to moderate geomagnetic storm taking place.

The higher the geomagnetic activity, the greater the chance of a glowing northern lights display.

A storm can increase the solar wind speed, sending huge numbers of charged particles from the sun towards earth at around one million miles per hour.

As these charged particles encounter earth's magnetic field, they are guided towards the North Pole and South Pole.

When these particles collide with gas molecules in Earth's atmosphere, energy is released in the form of light - causing the Aurora Borealis to happen.

Depending on which gas molecules are hit and where they are in the atmosphere, different amounts of energy are released as different wavelengths of light.

Oxygen gives off green light when it is hit 60 miles above the Earth, while at 100 to 200 miles rare, all-red auroras are produced.

Nitrogen causes the sky to glow blue and when higher in the atmosphere the glow has a purple hue.

Each geomagnetic storm has an associated Kp number, which indicates how far south the Northern Lights may be visible. The higher the Kp number, the further south the Northern Lights may be seen.

Earlier this week, the current geomagnetic storm had a Kp rating of five to six, which suggests the Northern Lights could be visible over central and northern Scotland where cloud cover doesn't interfere.

The lights generally extend from 50 miles to as high as 400 miles above the Earth's surface.

In Scotland, some of the best viewing spots of the night sky are well outside the cities in the country's dark sky zones, including parts of the Western Isles, Shetland and Orkney, Aberdeenshire, Galloway Forest Dark Sky Park, the Moray coast and Lochaber.

The clearest nights occur in the middle of the week as temperatures drop causing a widespread frost.

Clear skies, away from light pollution in the city limits, will give you the best chance of seeing the aurora, looking out towards the northern horizon.

Once in position, almost any camera - either digital or film - will work for photographing the aurora, as long as you can adjust it manually to take time exposures of 10-30 seconds or longer.

An average of 20 seconds should work suitably well to capture the levels of light that you need.

Many professional aurora photographers use around a 20 second exposure, with f2.8 lens at an ISO of 1600.

Nearly any kind of lens will work for aurora photography but, since the aurora can cover huge areas of the sky, a wide-angle lens is preferred.

A tripod is a very good call as any slight camera movement will have significant impact on your shot.

If you manage to spot the light dance and take any pictures, we'd love to see them and include them in our Northern Lights gallery.

Send them in to the STV Features desk by emailing laura.piper@stv.tv or on Twitter @STVNews.