Space & Astronomy

Enigmatic 'red sprites' spotted in the sky over Chile

By T.K. Randall
August 29, 2022 ·  0 comments

This is definitely not something that you see every day. Image Credit: Zdenek Bardon / ESO Resembling fountains of bright red phosphorous reaching high into the heavens, red sprites are caused by large-scale electrical discharges above thunderstorm clouds.

Despite being triggered by lightning striking the ground, the sprites themselves appear high up in the atmosphere at altitudes of up to 55 miles.

This particular example of the phenomenon was captured on camera near the European Southern Observatory's (ESO) La Silla Observatory.It appears close to the ground due to the perspective of the camera.

While red sprites have been well documented, they occur very rarely and when they do happen, they remain a fascinating and spectacular sight for anyone lucky enough to bear witness to them.

This Picture of the Week captures a very elusive phenomenon: red sprites. This is a form of lightning occurring well-above storm clouds, discharging electricity high up in Earth's atmosphere at an altitude of 50-90km.

🔗 https://t.co/uykgr4AjUZ

Credit: @zdenek_bardon / @ESO pic.twitter.com/XAovz0Y64j

— ESO (@ESO) August 22, 2022

Source: Science Alert | Comments (0)

Tags: Red Sprites, Chile