Lightning's mirror image... only much bigger

These rarely seen, highly charged meteorological events are known as gigantic jets, and they flash up to the lower levels of space, or ionosphere.

While they don't occur every time there is lightning, they are substantially larger than their downward striking cousins.

"Despite poor viewing conditions as a result of a full moon and a hazy atmosphere, we were able to clearly capture the gigantic jet," said study leader Steven Cummer, an electrical and computer engineer at Duke University in North Carolina.

A paper reporting Cummer's results appears online today in the journal Nature Geoscience.

Physorg.com Article

I didn't even know there was such a thing as reverse lightning, pretty impressive photos though, even if a little grainy and small.

Disclaimer: I'm a theist but not of the Abrahamic faiths. I have minor biblical scholar and scriptural skills. Also I am not a scientific/legal or medical expert in any field. Beware of my Contagious Memes! & watch out that you don't get cut on my Occams razor.All of this is my personal conjecture and should not be considered the absolute or most definitive state of things as they really are. Use this information at your own risk! I accept no liability if your ideology comes crashing down around you with accompanying consequences!

Explanation: 2ndry Source on lightning above the clouds!

Personal Disclosure: S&F!

Its only been in the last few years that we have had any photographic evidence that this kind of phenomenon exists. Id love to see some high res pictures of it.

[edit on 24-8-2009 by VitalOverdose]

I first came across this after seeing a documentary on the Columbia shuttle disaster, it was planned that they were to study these jets and the doco went to say it may have been what brought it down in the end. Regardless on the theory, the jets seem pretty awseome. Researchers have to get to a high enough point that is above the clouds ro witness it.
S&F

Here's a another image of some.

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/d7710cafdf8b.jpg[/atsimg]

These are a form of upper atmosphere lightning. There are a few types such as sprites, jets, blue starters and elves.

Upper-atmospheric lightning or upper-atmospheric discharge are terms sometimes used by researchers to refer to a family of electrical-breakdown phenomena that occur well above the altitudes of normal lightning. The preferred current usage is transient luminous events (TLEs) to refer to the various types of electrical-discharge phenomena in the upper atmosphere, because they lack several characteristics of the more familiar tropospheric lightning. TLEs include red sprites, sprite halos, blue jets, gigantic jets, and elves.

Source

A few more shots

Beautiful pics! I've never seen most of them before, was looking for decent pics for a thread I did a while ago on possible Electrical Weather, they would have been very nice.

I would love to see these in person, they must be incredibly big. I found there is also something called positive lightning, normal lightning but well more powerful.

Great world we live in.

EMM

reply to post by QBSneak000


Breath-taking pictures of the Planet at work

What an overload of Energy! That could be a whole new scientific field IF it were possible to use this 'natural' bio-energy on Earth.

reply to post by Melyanna Tengwesta


That is precisely what Tesla, Moray, and others were attempting. But due to faulty theories and thinking, we have not made any progress in the last ~100 years.

Now does anyone still believe inter/undercloud lightning is caused by frictional static charge buildup? I hope not.

They have measured the wave front of some of those phenomena... and found that they travel faster than the speed of light.

It's not from any particular particle... it's just that the interference band of the wavefront striking the atmosphere makes it seem to be faster than light.

reply to post by Matyas


Yea I know about Tesla and his theories on Free Energy or better siad Zero Point Energy.

A close friend of mine is part of this odd group of 'new age scientists' who try to produce this kind of energy. It's too hocuspocus for me.



[Quote]Now does anyone still believe inter/undercloud lightning is caused by frictional static charge buildup? I hope not.[/Quote]

I dont have a clue am an intuitive empath not a scientist.

Math and science were me worse classes in highskool

reply to post by Melyanna Tengwesta


Ah yes, a right brainer! Well, this is simple enough, and fun too...

[poetry]Can you feel all the power of the universe flowing from above? Does it pass through you and warm you to the very center of your soul? And when it speaks, can you hear the voice both within and without?

Or this, when the light shines, is it more than light? Does it bring euphoria and infinite joy?

Verily I say unto you there are those who will never know until they encompass it. As a fish swims it knows not of water. It blazes forth with incalcuable precision, an accuracy unattainable by all the machines of men, perfectly dividing the wave of dawn. In its octave the angels loose their voices, cracking the crystal prism of space.[/poetry]

That stuff. Nothing spooky about it, all it needs is an artist's brush.

Think about it. Why do they call those two wire zappers you see in old sci fi flicks Jacob's ladders? The stairway to heaven is electric! Why does Zeus hurl lightning from above? Olympus is not in the clouds, it is beyond the clouds. The old teachings take on new meanings.

Fantastic images.
Thanks for posting this,i never knew this existed.
Thanks to the others for posting more images.