Red Sprite Lightning
Explanation:
Recently two new types of
lightning have
been verified:
red sprites and blue
jets. These atmospheric discharges occur very high in the
Earth's atmosphere - much higher than the
familiar form of
lightning.
Red sprites
appear red in color and go from the tops of clouds to as high as the
ionosphere - an ionized layer 90 kilometers above the Earth's surface.
They last only a small fraction of a second. The existence of red sprites
has been suggested previously, but
only in 1994 were aircraft flown above
massive thunderstorms with the high speed video equipment necessary to
verify these spectacular events. Scientists are unsure of the cause and
nature of red sprites.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
