APOD: 2019 October 8 - Sprite Lightning in HD

Good morning, Rallypoint. Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD) is titled "Sprite Lightning in HD." Sprites are large-scale electrical discharges that occur high above thunderstorm clouds, and come in a varied range of visual shapes. They are usually triggered by the discharges of positive lightning between an underlying thundercloud and the ground. Today's image was captured during a thunderstorm over Italy. As you can see, sprites appear as luminous reddish-orange flashes, and often occur in clusters above the troposphere at an altitude range of 50–90 km (31–56 mi). Sprite lightning was first photographed on July 6, 1989, by scientists from the University of Minnesota and have subsequently been captured in video recordings many thousands of times. Unlike the lightning we are most familiar with, sprites are cold plasma phenomena that operate more like a long fluorescent light tubes than hot compact light bulbs. Sprites are best seen when powerful thunderstorms are visible from the side. Based on today's picture, I'd say that was one strong storm.