Good news - the 2022 Noctilucent Cloud season has begun.

If you're a loyal reader of this 14 year old column (thank you!) you'll already know that Noctilucent ("night shining") clouds - or NLC - are beautiful, wispy blue-silver clouds that are only visible at this time of the year.

They light up the northern sky very late on Summer evenings, usually between midnight and 3am, but some displays can last from sunset to sunrise.

Most displays of NLC are quite modest, and look like pale streaks and ribbons of silvery blue low on the northern horizon, scraping the treetops.

But sometimes a display becomes extremely vivid and then the NLC can reach up almost to overhead and span the sky from west to east, filling the sky with stunningly beautiful swirls, curls and streamers of electric blue bright enough to cast shadows and be reflected in rivers and lakes.

Unlike the aurora, NLC displays can't be predicted in advance with much confidence or accuracy.

Experienced observers monitor certain scientific websites to look for signs that a display is brewing, but all we can do really is keep an eye on the northern sky late on any clear evenings between now and the end of July and see if anything is visible.

You don't need any equipment to see NLC, they are bright enough to be clearly visible to the naked eye, but if you do have a pair of binoculars they will help you see the beautiful structures and shapes within the clouds.

And the camera on your phone will be good enough to take lovely photos of them too, as long as you hold it steady enough.