Incredible light activity photographed above thunderstorms
DOI: 10.1063/PT.5.029769
New Scientist : Blue jets, red sprites, and glimpses are the names of some of the bright phenomena that occur above clouds during thunderstorms. During a stay aboard the International Space Station, Danish astronaut Andreas Mogensen captured four videos and 160 photos of the weird activity. Although blue jets and sprites have been observed before, the so-called glimpses, or blue blobs of light, were unexpected. The images were presented at the European Geosciences Union meeting last week in Vienna. Also shown were ground-based images of lightning, such as the impressive view of giant upside-down jets of electrostatic discharge fanning out from a monsoon cloud over India. Although lightning is a common occurrence on Earth, its unpredictability has made it hard to study.
