Lightning
Latest about lightning

Billions of lightning bolts may have jump-started life on Earth, study suggests
By Brandon Specktor published
Lightning storms on early Earth may have given the planet enough phosphorus to craft the first DNA and RNA molecules, study suggests

Rare red sprite and blue jet create otherworldly light show above Hawaii
By Stephanie Pappas published
A camera at an observatory in Hawaii captured a red sprite and a blue jet in the same frame.

Video catches split second before intense lightning strike
By Nicoletta Lanese published
Scientists captured high-speed footage of the moment before lightning strikes.

Upward-shooting 'blue jet' lightning spotted from International Space Station
By Nicoletta Lanese published
The phenomenon can be difficult to observe from the ground below.

'Superbolts' are real, and they flash up to 1,000 times brighter than regular lightning
By Mindy Weisberger published
Scientists recently calculated the power of so-called superbolts — brighter-than-average lightning strikes.

Lightning killed 2 giraffes in South Africa: Were they doomed by their height?
By Mindy Weisberger published
After two dead giraffes were discovered in a South African nature reserve, scientists determined that the animals had been struck by lightning.

The electric hum of life may have originated with primordial lightning
By Mara Johnson-Groh published
A low-frequency hum in our cells syncs may have synced with ancient sky bolts.

400-mile-long lightning bolt over Brazil is biggest in recorded history
By Brandon Specktor published
A lightning bolt that traveled 440 miles across the sky of southern Brazil in 2018 has been confirmed as the biggest in history.
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