Tornadoes Weren’t Enough, Now We Have Jellyfish Lightning To Worry About
While we get a ton of storms in late Spring, they never really seem the same until the June heat tempers the weather. While tornadoes have been plentiful, we haven't seen the ultra-destructive EF5's in six years. So, while studying our recent storms, they've discovered some new things about some rare lightning.
It's called 'Red Sprite' - AKA - jellyfish lightning. A rare phenomenon that shows up in really strong storms. Some believe when the electrical energy is beyond what the clouds can handle, it escapes upwards towards the stratosphere. I didn't know about it, but after a quick wiki-check, I'm caught up enough. It's been known about since the 19th century, but we know little about it since it's so rare to behold. Which leads to the newest possible discovery and subject of this video... the green flash.
While you might already think "it's the camera sensor reacting to the low-but-suddenly-bright-light..." you're not alone. I initially thought that too. But then I remembered, and I can't believe I'm admitting it, Pirates of the Caribbean 3... The one where they rescue Captain Jack from Davy Jones Locker. The green flash. You might think that's just something Disney wrote into the movie to give the tale a little more umph, but there's a historical record of this green flash in pirate lore.
Then again, it could just be the camera sensor. We don't know, yet. But I have you ever noticed something similar. Like how things go purple after a cameras flash? Or maybe you're more familiar how everything goes yellow after a cell phone flash? Maybe the green flash in lore, and as a red sprite remnant, is likely our own eyes readjusting. But even on camera? It's a weird bit of science, but they'll get it done one day. Who knows, maybe we'll even start hearing about jellyfish lightning by next years severe weather season. Time will tell.