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India Today
04-07-2025
- Science
- India Today
105 pillars of light seen over the Himalayas. We now know what they were
On the night of May 19, 2022, the skies above the southern Tibetan Plateau, near the sacred Pumoyongcuo Lake, were illuminated by a breathtaking display: 105 towering pillars of red light flickered above the amateur photographers captured the images, details of which are published in a paper in Springer Nature. The phenomenon, now confirmed as the largest outbreak of 'red sprites' ever recorded above a single South Asian thunderstorm, has finally been explained thanks to a detailed study published in Advances in Atmospheric Sciences by researchers from the University of Science and Technology of China. The lightning that caused the sprites was mostly of positive type. (Photo: Angel An and Shuchang Dong) advertisementWHAT WERE THE PILLARS OF LIGHT? Red sprites are a rare and enigmatic form of high-altitude lightning, occurring between 40 and 55 miles above the Earth, far above conventional thunderstorm typical lightning, these electrical discharges manifest as fleeting, jellyfish-shaped flashes of crimson that can sometimes be crowned with bluish that remarkable night, two Chinese astrophotographers, Angel An and Shuchang Dong, captured the full spectacle, including not only the 105 red sprites but also 16 secondary jets and at least four elusive green emissions known as 'ghost sprites'—the first such sightings in TRIGGERED THE PILLARS OF LIGHT?Scientists found that these sprites were caused by powerful lightning strikes that hit the ground from the top of strikes came from a huge thunderstorm system, called a mesoscale convective complex, which covered over 2,00,000 square kilometers from the Ganges Plain all the way to the Tibetan Plateau. The phenomenon is now confirmed as the largest outbreak of 'red sprites'. (Photo:Angel An and Shuchang Dong) The lightning that caused the sprites was mostly of positive type and had very strong peak currents, over +50 kiloamperes. These strikes happened in the flatter, widespread part of the storm, similar to what's seen in big storms over the U.S. Great Plains and parts of coastal unravel the precise origins of each sprite, the research team developed an innovative method that synchronised video frames with satellite motion and star field data, achieving timing accuracy within one allowed them to link about 70 percent of the sprites to their triggering lightning strikes, providing unprecedented insight into the coupling between thunderstorms and the upper discovery not only confirms that Himalayan thunderstorms can produce some of the world's most complex and intense upper-atmospheric electrical discharges, but also opens new avenues for studying the physical and chemical impacts of such events on regional and global atmospheric scientists and skywatchers alike, the 105 pillars of light above the Himalayas have become a landmark event in the exploration of Earth's most mysterious lightning phenomena.- Ends
India Today
08-05-2025
- Science
- India Today
Scientists discover hidden role of sunlight in Earth's inner workings
A new study has shown how sunlight – technically, shortwave radiation – has been interacting with Earth's surface and atmosphere, which scientists are only beginning to prospective study, published in Advances in Atmospheric Sciences, shows how decades of research into shortwave radiation is reshaping our understanding of Earth's systems and could lead to major technological and scientific radiation refers to the energy emitted by the sun in the form of visible light, ultraviolet (UV), and short infrared (IR) wavelengths. It is responsible for heating the Earth's surface. It plays a major role in climate and weather 'Shortwave radiation variability has always attracted scientific attention,' lead scientist Jake Gristey explained. 'It has real-world applications in areas like agriculture, renewable energy, and air quality.'The study was led by Gristey from the University of Colorado's Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, in association with the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP), and NOAA's Chemical Sciences Laboratory. According to Gristey, in the new study, three examples of shortwave radiation research have 'received notable recent attention', as stated in a release by Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of paper highlights three key areas where shortwave radiation research is driving change. First, the study points to a major flaw in how atmospheric models simulate sunlight. Most current computer models treat radiation as if it travels only vertically in isolated columns, ignoring how it moves horizontally across the atmosphere. As models become more detailed, Gristey argues, this oversight becomes increasingly significant and calls for new research into more realistic stresses that future research must account for this horizontal transport to improve climate and weather the study tackles gaps in satellite data. 'Shortwave radiation reflected by Earth can change drastically throughout the day, but many satellites only measure limited parts of the day,' Gristey explains. He suggests that recent advances in small satellites and compact sensors could allow for a network of low-cost spacecraft to fill in these blind study explains that these limited satellites restrains our understanding of how shortwave radiation behaves across the full day. Gristey highlights that recent advances in small satellite technology and sensor miniaturisation offer a solution. A network of cost-effective, small satellites could fill this critical gap and provide more complete data. The study is reshaping our understanding of Earth's systems. (Photo: Getty) Finally, the research dives into the 'spectral structure' of shortwave radiation, its rich range of colours or wavelengths. These carry information about the Earth's surface and atmosphere that could help track changes in land use, pollution and climate. Gristey believes an upcoming wave of satellites will unlock the full potential of this spectral study says that the shortwave radiation that is sunlight is made up of a wide spectrum of wavelengths, each carrying different types of information. By studying how different wavelengths reflect off Earth's surface and atmosphere, scientists can learn about changes in land, oceans and presented these findings at the International Radiation Symposium 2024. This study is also part of a special issue of this symposium. Gristey also received the International Radiation Commission's Young Scientist Reel
Yahoo
20-03-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Mysterious ‘red lightning' spotted over Himalayas is finally explained
A strange 'red lightning' phenomenon photographed from near a lake site in the southern Tibetan plateau in 2022 was driven by thunderstorms over the Himalayan region, scientists discover in a new study. Thunderstorms can generate different types of transient luminous events like gigantic jets and blue jets via the transfer of charges involved in lightning formation from inside clouds to the ground. On the night of 19 May 2022, two astrophotographers located near Pumoyongcuo Lake in Tibet captured the spectacular display of "red sprites' – an atmospheric phenomenon named after their jellyfish-like appearance. These were electrical discharges that produced vivid red flashes high above thunderstorms. In this particular event in 2022, researchers also spotted 16 rare secondary jets and the first-ever recorded case in Asia of green airglow at the base of the ionosphere – a layer of the atmosphere containing a high concentration of ions about 80 to 1,000km (50 to 620miles) above the earth's surface. 'Nearly half of these events involved dancing sprites, with an additional 16 uncommon secondary jets and at least four extremely rare green emissions called 'ghosts' observed following the associated sprites,' scientists wrote in a new study. The findings, published in the journal Advances in Atmospheric Sciences, revealed the driving force behind this grand red sprites display. "This event was truly remarkable," says study co-author Gaopeng Lu from the Chinese Academy of Sciences. In the latest research, scientists assessed photographs of the event to probe the parent lightning discharges. Due to the lack of precise timestamps to analyse photos and videos of the event, researchers developed an innovative method to synchronise video time using satellite trajectories and star field analysis. Using this approach, they could determine the exact occurrence times of the sprites, and link them to their parent lightning discharges. Based on the analysis, scientists found that the sprites were triggered by a 'high-peak current' positive cloud-to-ground lightning strikes within a massive convective system spanning a cloud area of over 200,000sqkm. The parent lightning discharges which drove the red sprites arose from a convective complex stretching from the Ganges Plain to the southern foothills of the Tibetan Plateau, researchers noted. '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,' Dr Lu said. The findings, according to researchers, hint that storms in the region may generate even more complex discharge structures like the red sprites.
The Independent
20-03-2025
- Science
- The Independent
Mysterious ‘red lightning' spotted over Himalayas is finally explained
A strange 'red lightning ' phenomenon photographed from near a lake site in the southern Tibetan plateau in 2022 was driven by thunderstorms over the Himalayan region, scientists discover in a new study. Thunderstorms can generate different types of transient luminous events like gigantic jets and blue jets via the transfer of charges involved in lightning formation from inside clouds to the ground. On the night of 19 May 2022, two astrophotographers located near Pumoyongcuo Lake in Tibet captured the spectacular display of " red sprites ' – an atmospheric phenomenon named after their jellyfish-like appearance. These were electrical discharges that produced vivid red flashes high above thunderstorms. In this particular event in 2022, researchers also spotted 16 rare secondary jets and the first-ever recorded case in Asia of green airglow at the base of the ionosphere – a layer of the atmosphere containing a high concentration of ions about 80 to 1,000km (50 to 620miles) above the earth's surface. 'Nearly half of these events involved dancing sprites, with an additional 16 uncommon secondary jets and at least four extremely rare green emissions called 'ghosts' observed following the associated sprites,' scientists wrote in a new study. The findings, published in the journal Advances in Atmospheric Sciences, revealed the driving force behind this grand red sprites display. "This event was truly remarkable," says study co-author Gaopeng Lu from the Chinese Academy of Sciences. In the latest research, scientists assessed photographs of the event to probe the parent lightning discharges. Due to the lack of precise timestamps to analyse photos and videos of the event, researchers developed an innovative method to synchronise video time using satellite trajectories and star field analysis. Using this approach, they could determine the exact occurrence times of the sprites, and link them to their parent lightning discharges. Based on the analysis, scientists found that the sprites were triggered by a 'high-peak current' positive cloud-to-ground lightning strikes within a massive convective system spanning a cloud area of over 200,000sqkm. The parent lightning discharges which drove the red sprites arose from a convective complex stretching from the Ganges Plain to the southern foothills of the Tibetan Plateau, researchers noted. '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,' Dr Lu said. The findings, according to researchers, hint that storms in the region may generate even more complex discharge structures like the red sprites.
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Scientists sound alarm after collecting unprecedented data from world's oceans: 'The broken records ... have become a broken record'
Scientists recorded the warmest ocean temperatures in human history last year, according to research published in the Advances in Atmospheric Sciences journal. "The broken records in the ocean have become a broken record," said Chinese Academy of Sciences professor Lijing Cheng, who led 54 scientists from seven countries in studying how warmer oceans affect life on land, per The upper 2,000 meters of ocean gained 16 zettajoules of heat from 2023 to 2024, according to the academy's writeup — about 140 times the world's total electricity output in 2023. "[Ocean heat content] has increased steadily by 15-20 ZJ over the past five years despite the La Niña and El Niño cycles," said Professor Michael Mann of the University of Pennsylvania. Oceans store 90% of excess heat from our warming planet and cover 70% of Earth's surface, per They shape weather by moving heat and moisture into the air. "To know what is happening to the climate, the answer is in the ocean," said study co-author Professor John Abraham of the University of St. Thomas. Dr. Karina von Schuckmann of Mercator Ocean International agreed, saying: "The ocean is our sentinel for planetary warming, acting as the major sink of surplus heat accumulating in the Earth's climate system as a result of anthropogenic emissions." The warming isn't equal everywhere. The Atlantic, Mediterranean, and parts of the Pacific show rapid heating. The heat reaches both poles. These changes harm sea life — raising questions about future food security and the people who depend upon oceans for their livelihoods — and lead to more water vapor in the air. "Water vapor is also a powerful greenhouse gas, and increased heating leads to drying and risk of drought and wildfire. But it also fuels storms of all sorts and leads to risk of flooding. That includes hurricanes and typhoons," said Dr. Kevin Trenberth from the National Center for Atmospheric Research. Should we be harnessing the ocean to power our homes? Absolutely Leave it be It depends I'm not sure Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. Many countries now invest in clean energy and ocean protection, including the United States, which has passed legislation supporting solar, wind, and other renewable power sources. Many coastal areas also have initiatives to protect and restore seagrass beds, mangroves, and salt marshes — natural defenses that pull heat-trapping gases from the air. At home, you can help cool the oceans by installing energy-efficient appliances and LED lights. Small steps add up — even shortening your shower time and washing clothes in cold water saves energy and money. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
