Scientists Unveil Secrets of Mysterious Red Sprite Lightning Strikes Over the Highest Mountain Range in the World

1:42:29

2025-04-30

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Over 100 red sprites were captured above the Himalayas in 2022. A study linked them to strong lightning strikes in a large thunderstorm system and introduced a new timing method for analysis.

Have you ever heard of or seen red lightning? These are not animated characters, but real atmospheric phenomena called electrical discharges that occur high above thunderstorms. Scientists refer to them as “red sprites,” named for their jellyfish-like shape and vivid red flashes. Now, imagine witnessing these mesmerizing displays above the world’s highest mountain range: the Himalayas.

On the night of May 19, 2022, two Chinese astrophotographers, Angel An and Shuchang Dong, captured a spectacular display of more than one hundred red sprites over the Himalayas. The observation site was located on the southern Tibetan Plateau near Pumoyongcuo Lake, one of the region’s three sacred lakes. What they recorded was a breathtaking celestial event. Among the phenomena captured were dancing sprites, rare secondary jets, and the first-ever recorded instance in Asia of green airglow at the base of the nighttime ionosphere, known as “ghost sprites.” This extraordinary event gained international attention and was widely reported by major media outlets.

Scientific Investigation into the Sprites

A recent study published in Advances in Atmospheric Sciences by Professor Gaopeng Lu and his team at the University of Science and Technology of China sheds light on the driving force behind this grand “sprite fireworks”—lightning and thunderstorms.

“This event was truly remarkable,” said Professor Gaopeng Lu. “By analyzing the parent lightning discharges, we discovered that the sprites were triggered by high-peak current positive cloud-to-ground lightning strikes within a massive mesoscale convective system. This suggests that thunderstorms in the Himalayan region have the potential to produce some of the most complex and intense upper-atmospheric electrical discharges on Earth.”

Innovative Timing Method for Analysis

Lacking precise timestamps for detailed analysis, the research team developed an innovative method to synchronize video time using satellite trajectories and star field analysis. This innovative approach allowed them to determine the exact occurrence times of the sprites and link them to their parent lightning discharges. One of the anonymous reviewers praised the technique, highlighting its potential as a reliable timing tool for citizen scientists contributing to scientific observations.

The study revealed that the parent lightning discharges occurred within stratiform precipitation regions of a mesoscale convective complex stretching from the Ganges Plain to the southern foothills of the Tibetan Plateau. This event recorded the highest number of sprites during a single thunderstorm in South Asia, suggesting that thunderstorms in this region possess upper-atmospheric discharge capabilities comparable to those in the U.S. Great Plains and offshore European storms. Moreover, the findings indicate that these storms may generate even more complex discharge structures, potentially influencing atmospheric coupling processes with significant physical and chemical effects.