Mysterious weather phenomenon captured in unprecedented detail by astronauts

Pretty cool phenomenon.

Just thought i would share...

Enjoy



Read more here

It is a rare glimpse into space weather that has never been captured on film before. This amazing Nasa image shows a 'sprite', a flash of red and blue light which flashes for a thousandth of a second. Researchers have previously been unable to capture them on film at high resolution.

Stunning images taken by a Japanese TV camera reveal a lightning 'sprite' high above the earth. It is the first time the phenomenon has been captured on film


The first color image of a sprite ever captured. It was taken in 1994 by a NASA-sponsored project through the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) that flew special cameras on two aircraft flown out of Oklahoma City.

These things are amazing this makes me envision a whole new way of the process of a lightning strike...
I thought the generation of the bolt that goes to the ground was a lot lower and now I wonder if it starts in the very edge of our impact on the universe

reply to post by Mianeye

Mianeye, I'm not blaming you for this because I know you just copied the title, but the title doesn't sound right.

I don't see any detail at all in the astronaut image, it just looks like a big blob that's completely lacking in any detail.

In contrast, some of the other images not from space have tremendous detail. So I find the other imagery quite impressive and very detailed.

Of course, it is "TheMail" so I guess I shouldn't set my expectations too high.

Some kind of plasma based life form that lives in the upper regions of our atmosphere/ionosphere?

Investigators now think sprites probably occur when an unusually potent stroke of lightning creates an intense electrostatic field above the cloud from which it emanates. Ions (electrically charged atoms) and electrons floating about the atmosphere are heated by this field and glow red in response, scientists speculate.

www-star.stanford.edu...

Maybe thats how you open a wormhole?

possibly h.a.a.r.p's after math doing its work in our atmoshpere??

Only the larger strikes produce these discharges into space, i read somewhere years ago that they help replenish the atmosphere and produce a rare element or gas,

Originally posted by freakshowfatty
These things are amazing this makes me envision a whole new way of the process of a lightning strike...
I thought the generation of the bolt that goes to the ground was a lot lower and now I wonder if it starts in the very edge of our impact on the universe

If I recall correctly lightning travels up out of the ground. The particles being charged in the ground sort of reach out for the particles int he sky (at least that intense burst of light humans can see).

reply to post by TritonTaranis


Lightning can create Ozone, is that what you were thinking of?

reply to post by MmmPie


your talking about the reverse lighting strikkes??

reply to post by MmmPie


upwards lighting

reply to post by eye0see0with0my0third0eye


I'm pretty sure it's all of them, the visible portion of them. The light we see rises from the ground up, however the initial connection between the negative charge of the bottom portion of a cloud and the positive charge of the earth travels from the sky towards the Earth. I haven't studied any of this in more than ten years, but I'm pretty sure this is how it works?


Anyway, back to the thread at hand. That secondary burst from the video had to of been MASSIVE. It's pretty big from the vantage point, I could only imagine the damage that could have caused on the surface if it did in fact strike something.

reply to post by MmmPie


looks like it would do some hefty amount of damage if it were to touch any object

Could these cause damage to planes?

In a Bermuda triangle style way?

weird i live in connecticut and i was ocean fishing and there was a storm out in the sea i thought, and the lightning was so intense it was red, it was actually pretty cool have been seeing alot of it lately to be honest, i wonder if its normal

Originally posted by Beavers
Could these cause damage to planes?

In a Bermuda triangle style way?

The only reason I would say probably not is because if you look at the 1994 Japanese picture, it shows the burst happening of upwards of 40 kilometers (probably closer to 50). Even the specialized military planes designed to fly at high altitudes only scrape 30 kilometers, some classified can probably reach near the 40 kilometer mark or higher, but that's only speculation.

So a commercial plane or one from the 1940's (Such as the Flight 19 planes) would not be at risk. That is if the bolts cannot happen at much, much lower altitudes or give off extremely powerful, but short-lived, EMP-type bursts.

Ahhh, the spectacular beauty of this existance never cease to amaze my young mind.

Thank you OP.

Holy sh*t thats awesome and that they managed to capture it on film and also that the ISS was just hovering above it what a coincidence never seen anything like that

Originally posted by TritonTaranis
Only the larger strikes produce these discharges into space, i read somewhere years ago that they help replenish the atmosphere and prtoduce a rare element or gas,

Nitrogen?