Astronaut Snaps Photo of Enigmatic “Red Sprite” Hovering Far Above the Earth

A red sprite is a rare phenomenon that was recently captured on camera by an astronaut from the European Space Agency (ESA). These photos were taken by astronaut Andreas Mogensen for the Thor-Davis experiment at Danish Technical University with a high-resolution camera. The purpose of the experiment is to look at upper atmospheric lightning and how it affects greenhouse gas concentrations, which in turn affects global warming. The red sprite in the astronaut’s image was estimated by scientists to be around 14 by 26 kilometers (8.7 by 16.2 miles).

Lead scientist and senior researcher at DTU Space, Olivier Chanrion, told to reporter that “these images taken by Andreas are fantastic.”

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“The Davis camera works well and gives us the high temporal resolution necessary to capture the quick processes in the lightning.”

What’s a red Sprite, anyway?

A Transient Luminous Event (TLE) is a remarkable meteorological occurrence that is represented by a red sprite. It sometimes happens above thunderstorms at a height of 40 to 80 kilometers (25 to 50 miles) above the surface of the Earth. This phenomenon is known as red lightning. A sprite acts like reverse lightning in that it ascends into the atmosphere instead of the normal lightning bolts that fall from the clouds to the ground.

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A red sprite’s brief existence—less than one millisecond—makes it difficult for researchers to catch and thoroughly examine them. These phenomena are mostly visible from space and provide challenges for Earthly observation since they appear above thunderclouds. However, a closer examination of their properties can provide important new information about upper-atmospheric activities and contribute to scientific knowledge.

Blue jets are another type of transient luminous event; rare sprites are not the only meteorological phenomena that occur.