Lightning

(Image credit: NOAA)

Lightning is essentially a giant spark of static electricity, though much about how and why it forms remains unknown and the subject of scientific research. It is known that lightning occurs in thunderstorms when there is a separation of electrical charge within the storm clouds, which can cause cloud-to-cloud lightning, the majority of lightning that occurs in a storm. A charge separation can also form between thunderstorm clouds and the ground, leading to classic cloud-to-ground lightning. Thunder is the acoustic shock wave that results from the heat that a lightning strike produces. NASA research suggests that lightning flashes 40 times a second around the globe. Read about the latest lightning research and see amazing lightning photos below.

Latest about lightning

A red ring of light appears to hang above an Italian town.

Eerie ring of red light flashes like a massive UFO above Italy. What was it?

By Harry Baker published

An enormous red halo of light flashed in the night sky above Italy before disappearing within milliseconds. It was likely caused by an electromagnetic pulse from a nearby thunderstorm.

The infrared laser beam fishes for lightning in the sky above Switzerland's Säntis mountain.

Powerful laser blast used to control lightning for the first time

By Ben Turner published

This is the first ever real-world demonstration of the effect

Multiple bolts of lightning strike ground and water along a coastline in Italy. The sky is dark blue.

Why does lightning zigzag?

By Tom Metcalfe published

The characteristic zigzag pattern of lightning is caused by a highly conductive form of oxygen that builds up as the bolt travels toward the ground.

Fused sand from lightning or a downed power line, known as a fulgurite. This fulgurite, found in Nebraska, holds a rare material known as a quasicrystal.

Rare, 'rule-breaking' quasicrystal found in chunk of 'fossilized' lightning

By Stephanie Pappas published

A type of crystal that breaks the rules of ordinary crystallography has been found in a tube of melted sand from Nebraska.

Electrical discharges given off by the leaves of plants during a thunderstorm can significantly alter the surrounding air quality.

Plant leaves spark with electricity during thunderstorms — and that could be altering our air quality in unpredictable ways

By Harry Baker published

During thunderstorms, leaves from trees and other plants create mini electric discharges that can significantly alter the surrounding air quality. But researchers are unsure if this is beneficial or harmful.

This photo taken from the ISS above the South China Sea on Oct. 30 2021 shows a pair of unrelated bright blue blobs in Earth's atmosphere.

Bizarre blue blobs hover in Earth's atmosphere in stunning astronaut photo. But what are they?

By Harry Baker published

An astronaut onboard the ISS recently captured a peculiar image of Earth with two unrelated blue blobs of light shining in the planet's atmosphere.

Lightning strikes the launchpad near the Mega Moon rocket

Lightning strikes Artemis I mission's 'Mega Moon rocket' launch pad during tests

By Jeanna Bryner last updated

The Artemis I mission's Mega Moon rocket was undergoing "wet" tests Saturday (April 2).

Three sequential photos of a 'gigantic jet' lightning bolt blasting out of the top of a cloud over Oklahoma, and shooting directly into space.

'Gigantic jet' that shot into space may be the most powerful lightning bolt ever detected

By Brandon Specktor published

Scientists detected the most powerful gigantic jet lightning bolt — a lightning bolt that shoots up out of a cloud into the ionosphere — ever.

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Video Reveals 'Sprite' Lightning Secrets

By Dave Mosher last updated

Ultra-fast, ultra-bright sprites caught forming in the act.

Column-shaped red sprites

Brilliant Red Sprite Lightning Caught on Camera

By Becky Oskin last updated

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