Sprites are large-scale electrical discharges which occur high above a thunderstorm cloud, or cumulonimbus, giving rise to a quite varied range of visual shapes.They are triggered by the discharges of positive lightning between the thundercloud and the ground. While similar to regular lightning, which shoots between electrically charged air, clouds, and the ground, sprites happen much farther from Earth's surface. Special viewing sites are needed to see sprites, as they always hide above thunderstorms. Elves, like sprites, occur over an area of active cloud-to-ground lightning, and are also found in the ionosphere. They only accompany bolts of lightning over 10 times more powerful than normal lightning. How to See a Red Sprite. Another type of lightning occurs when some strokes actually emit from the ground into the sky. These two types of atmospheric glows form when lightning alters electric fields in the atmosphere above a storm. 2008; Jehl et al. Rather, these flashes happen in the Earth’s mesosphere, up to 50 miles high in the sky. They can be seen from space as they extend up to 60 miles above a cloud top. The sprites appear as short-lived bursts of red light with various physical shapes (jellyfish sprite, column sprite, and carrot sprite are the most common categories of their visual appearance). Sprite Lightning in HD . A similar observatory is in the Pyrenees range of southern France. March 7, 2020: Sprite season is coming. At the Yucca Ridge Field Station, run by FMA Research in northern Colorado, sprite-watchers can see lightning from storms 1,000 kilometers away over the Great Plains. The bizarre weather phenomenon is actually the result of red sprites, a type of electrical discharge that happens much higher up than conventional-looking lightning. Here’s an interesting fact: Lightning sprites and TLE s do not happen in our normal thunderstorms with rain clouds. 1995; Lyons 1996; Yair et al. This, in turn, triggers activity in the atmosphere above the storm: a sprite. Red sprites usually occur above a large thunderstorm and are normally a red color. All are associated with severe thunderstorms. These flashes are one in a motley menagerie of sprite types. Sprites have been observed over North America, Central America, South America, Europe, Central Africa (), Australia, the Sea of Japan and Asia and are believed to occur during most large thunderstorm systems.. Rodger (1999) categorized three types of sprites based on their visual appearance. The same storms that produce superbolts frequently have enough energy to produce other types of lightning as well; red sprites and blue jets both form in the region miles above a severe thunderstorm, close to space, while ball lightning is regarded by scientists as one of the most curious forms of lightning to date. When people think of lightning, the image that springs to mind is the dramatic cloud to ground strike. Red sprites usually occur during a cloud-to-ground lightning strike. Jellyfish sprite – very large, up to 50 by 50 km (31 by 31 mi). This type of lightning is known as negative lightning due to the discharge of negative charge from the cloud, and accounts for over 95% of all lightning. They can reach all the way to the mesosphere! Some thunderstorms have them, but most don't. Pinterest; Facebook; Twitter; Email; There's more to lightning than just the bolt emoji or the little streak on Harry Potter's forehead. May 13, 2019 - From ball lightning and blue jets to elves and sprites, thunderstorms have a lot of tricks up their sleeves. Statistics: an average bolt of negative lightning carries a current of 30 kiloamperes, transfers a charge of 5 coulombs, has a potential difference of about 100 megavolts, and lasts a few milliseconds. 2004; Chen et al. It happened twice in the skies over the middle of the country for just a split second -- and he managed to catch both occurrences. Scientists are still figuring it out, but what we do know is fascinating. We do know that red sprites and elves occur over cloud-to-ground lightning bolts. Lightning sprites are offshoots of large-scale electrical discharges that take place high in Earth’s atmosphere, above thunderstorms. Sprite Observing . 2.4.2 Convective Storm Types and TLEs 39 2.5 Research Frontiers 41 xi v. SPRITES, ELVES AND INTENSE LIGHTNING DISCHARGES 2.5.1 Importance 42 2.5.2 Outstanding Research Questions 43 Acknowledgments 44 THE MICROPHYSICAL AND ELECTRICAL PROPERTIES OF SPRITE-PRODUCING THUNDERSTORMS 57 Earle Williams and Y. Yair 3.1 Introduction 57 3.2 The Non-Inductive Charging … Despite this, lightning inside a cloud or that goes cloud-to-cloud is the most common type of lightning. There are three types of this rare lightning that have been discovered; red sprites, blue jets, and elves. For every cloud-to-ground strike, there can be three to five cloud-to-cloud strikes. 2013; Sato et al. 2015). Some types of lightning are also deadlier than others. It looks like branched jagged lines and is capable of striking at a distance of 10 miles from the thunderstorm. All of Earth weather occurs in the troposphere (4 to 12 miles above us). A more recently discovered class of lightning occurs above the cloud layer, jumping from the tops of clouds into the stratosphere. Sprites are a type of transient luminous event, like lightning, but fainter, faster and significantly larger, Jessica Leigh Hester explains for Atlas Obscura.Stephen Hummel, a … 1990; Boccippio et al. Jellyfish lightning, also known as sprites, are red flashes of light that last for a few seconds. Interesting Lightning Facts: 21-25. Aug 27, 2013 - From ball lightning and blue jets to elves and sprites, thunderstorms have a lot of tricks up their sleeves. Jupiter is the first planet other than Earth seen to host what appear to be atmospheric light shows called “sprites” or “elves.” Understanding light and other forms of energy on the move. Red sprites, as one major type of lightning-induced transient luminous events (TLEs) above thunderstorms, are short-lived (typically < 20 ms) structured optical emis-sions that could be observed from both ground-based (Franz et al. Even though sprites have been recorded for over 30 years, their root cause remains unknown. characteristics of infrasound from lightning and sprites when these kinds of sources were close to the sensors (that is, for lightning distances lower than 100 km and sprite distances lower than 300 km). This type of lightning looks like a bright flicker in a cloud. https://earthsky.org/earth/definition-what-are-lightning-sprites These lightning types include: red sprites, blue jets, and elves. These lightning types are known as red sprites, elves and blue jets. Actually, there are three types of lightning originating from various altitudes of the atmosphere: cloud to air, cloud to cloud, and cloud to ground. Spring thunderstorms often produce the year’s first big bursts of upward-directed lightning. We still lack full knowledge about these forms of lightning. Here are some of the rarest, weirdest, and scariest forms of lightning out there. 2015) and space-borne platforms (Yair et al. Blue jets occur in the stratosphere and have been observed by pilots. 21. Sprites are often considered to be a type of upper atmospheric lightning. Here’s an overview BY LAYER OF ATMOSPHERE SPRITES. A Forked Lightning is a type of lightning that can be a CG lightning, a CC lightning or a CA lightning. Ever wonder how lightning works? Three different types of optical phenomena have been observed at high altitude above thunderstorms: an enhanced airglow (“elves”) at roughly ∼90 km; a reddish glow (“sprites”) from 50 to 90 km; and an upward moving, bluish emission (“jets”) below 40 km. It is a type of lightning known as red sprite, and rarely has it ever been photographed in this detail. Positive Lightning. Types of lightning. Sprites are only found where lightning is present, but spotting sprites isn't easy. This phenomenon occurs in the sky over our heads, not the sea. Sprites occur when lightning bolts funnel positive charge from cloud to ground, leaving the cloud negatively charged. Two types of quick, bright flashes of light, called blue sprites and elves, have been detected in the upper atmosphere of Jupiter by NASA's Juno mission. Stratosphere and have been observed by pilots of this rare lightning that can be CG. Our normal thunderstorms with rain clouds last for a few seconds there are three types of rare... 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