New Virus Or Alien Invasion? Why The Birmingham's Sky Turned Bright Pink

Magical scenes were witnessed in Birmingham after residents reported stepping out of their houses and seeing a rare pink-purple hue in the night sky on Saturday. Fascinated by the dreamy phenomenon, the locals of the England’s West Midlands region pulled out their smartphones and began capturing the rare sight. Then, things took a bizarre turn on social media when some unironically ran amok with wild theories, wondering if it were an alien invasion, a spread of a new virus, or a sign from god. Others, less morbidly, assumed it was Birmingham’s time to shine in all its Northern lights (aurora borealis) glory.

Norway and Iceland, who?

But for good reasons or bad, the explanation behind the strange glowing skies of Birmingham was rather unremarkable.

“Something Has Changed”

The Brummies knew what they were seeing wasn’t a daily event. They were excited, understandably. Add snow and a wintery evening to the mix, and the locals were instantly teleported into a mystical Disney movie world.

🇬🇧 Meanwhile in Birmingham, UK

Pink snow filled skies that never ever used to happen, just happened again!

Something has changed. pic.twitter.com/EC6SUWJJ88

— Concerned Citizen (@BGatesIsaPyscho) January 9, 2026

Others were just curious.

Can somebody tell me why the sky is pink in Birmingham that is weird but it also looks nice 👌🏻 pic.twitter.com/tUlnlZV2kZ

— ???????????????????????? 🇬🇧 (@BBlues100) January 9, 2026

The incredible views were shared by social media users on X, Reddit, and TikTok, quickly racking up thousands of views and drawing widespread attention.

Snow with a Purple Sky?!!
Birmingham is not a real place lol pic.twitter.com/UIPJzXzJ0G

— 🦍 (@shaqxii) January 9, 2026

*Insert heart-eye emoji*

Who said Birmingham isn’t beautiful pic.twitter.com/lt4QULJhwP

— shakur ひ (@38VVS_) January 8, 2026

Conspiracy Theorists Go Wild

Not all were curious or happy in any measure. Away from X, a few TikTok users believed, unironically, that Birmingham was doomed. A Reddit user claimed to have encountered bizarre conspiracy theories that went viral on the video-sharing platform.

“Have you seen this on Tiktok? You wouldn’t believe how stupid humanity has become. Here are just a FEW things with several thousands, sometimes tens of thousands of likes on their comments, about what that purple sky apparently is,” u/I-REALLY-HATE-COFFEE remarked.

Here were some of the unpleasant theories jotted down by the user.

“It’s Jesus coming back (around 80k likes, they were serious)
It’s the democrats spreading a new virus
It’s an alien invasion
It’s the end of the world
It’s some kind of mexican demon or ghost (Yes I’m serious)
It’s a sign of god that the world is healing because donald trump is president now (Yes I’m also serious) (sic).”

The Humble Science

“No natural surface reflects more visible light than freshly fallen snow. In this wavelength range its albedo (reflective capacity) can be as high as 95%,” SLF (Snow and Avalanche Research) wrote while listing the optical properties of snow. “On the other hand, the albedo varies according to the type and composition of the snow, and therefore differs for fresh and old snow, corn snow, and clean and contaminated glacial ice,” the blog further added.

Birmingham’s atmospheric conditions and low cloud cover further enhanced the effect, a report in BBC noted.

I never ever thought I’d be jealous of people living in Birmingham pic.twitter.com/X4Gfi5bOoY

— A$AP YAPI (@WeMajorLover21) January 9, 2026

So What Was The Snow Reflecting?

A football stadium’s lights. More specifically, the LED pitch lights. The pink glow, used on the pitches, was to help the grass grow and recover.

Pink sky at night, Blues delight. 🩷 pic.twitter.com/OA8Ywbnreo

— Birmingham City FC (@BCFC) January 9, 2026

“Seems the ‘northern lights’ were a bit closer to home. That pink glow in the sky was our LED pitch lights helping the grass grow & recover, keeping us ready to chase 3 points, not the aurora. Who knew a bit of pitch care could create so much interest!” debunked Hednesford Town FC on X. ac