A local photographer has many people thinking aliens are taking over Lacombe.

Darlene Tanner with Team Tanner snapped an early morning photo over the city that went viral and was picked up by many national stations.

Yellow, white and orange beams of light can be seen covering the sky.

“They look like beams of light shooting up into the sky,” she adds with a laugh “like, beam me up, Scotty!”

Tanner says, “they do look crazy if you don’t know what they are, you would think they were something weird like that and they do get mistaken for the northern lights a lot.”

She says although the lights look very strange, it is naturally occurring and happens in the colder temperatures after lots of snow.

“Minus 13 and colder brings out the ice crystals if you see sun dogs, or halos around the sun then that’s kind of the same thing,” she explains, “the ice crystals in the atmosphere reflect the light.”

She says if she sees a sun dog she knows she has to get into action mode because it gives her the clue that they might turn up really bright at night.

Tanner took the photo between 3 and 6 in the morning when temperatures were at an extreme low.

However, she says the glittery lights can be seen as early as 7 p.m. when it is dark and it starts getting colder.