Why do the aurora look better through a camera? And how do you spot a fake image? Q&A with an astrophotographer

On 10 and 11 May 2024, large parts of the world were treated to their most spectacular display of the aurora – the northern and southern lights – in a generation. Thanks to modern cameras, the phenomenon was all over social media. It seems almost everyone knew someone who managed to snap vivid images of the night sky illuminated in pink, purple and green.

To understand why camera phones were able to pick out colours and details invisible to the naked eye, The Conversation spoke to Darren Baskill...