Oct 24, 2021 13:00:00

What is the true identity of the 'mysterious blue mysterious light' in the photograph of the earth taken from space?

On October 8, 2021, astronaut Thomas Pesque posted on Twitter 'Photographs taken over Europe from the International Space Station', and it became a hot topic that a blue mysterious light was reflected. Science Alert, a science news site, explains the true nature of this blue light.

What The Heck Was This Blue'Luminous Event' Photographed From The Space Station?

https://www.sciencealert.com/what-the-heck-is-this-luminous-event-captured-in-a-photo-from-the-international-space-station

This is the photo actually posted by Mr. Pesuke. You can see the part that glows blue on the image.

???? A single frame from a timelapse over #Europe , showing a transient luminous event in the upper atmosphere! We have a ????????-led facility monitoring these events thanks in part to @Astro_Andreas who took the first picture of them from space! ⚡ https://t.co/tfFS3KqYmm #MissionAlpha pic.twitter.com/XqBdJ64pBq

— Thomas Pesquet (@Thom_astro) October 7, 2021

In fact, astronaut Andreas Morgensen shot a movie similar to this from the International Space Station in 2015.

Andreas Mogensen captures gigantic lightning from the International Space Station --YouTube


According to Science Alert, this blue light is due to a phenomenon called ' upper-atmospheric lightning discharge'. Upper-atmospheric lightning discharge is a phenomenon in which a discharge occurs far above the place where normal lightning occurs, and there are various types depending on the light and the place where it occurs.

For example, the phenomenon called 'blue jet' that occurs in the stratosphere is thought to be due to the ionization of nitrogen in the atmosphere and the generation of blue light when lightning, which should have fallen downward, penetrates the clouds upwards. I am. Below is a photo of the Blue Jet actually taken at the Gemini Observatory in Mauna Kea, Hawaii in July 2017.

In addition, above the stratosphere

mesosphere a phenomenon seen with is called a 'sprite', you punch-through on a red light, as shown in the following photo. This occurs when a quasi-electrostatic field is generated at high altitude due to a lightning strike. When blue jets and red sprites are generated, it seems that a light emitting phenomenon on a huge donut with a diameter of several hundred kilometers called 'Elves' can also be seen.

Furthermore, these upper-atmospheric lightning discharges have been confirmed not only on Earth but also on Jupiter. In October 2020, NASA's Jupiter spacecraft, Juneau , confirmed with an ultraviolet camera how sprites and elves were occurring.

Jupiter's lightning turned out to be 'close to Earth's lightning' unlike conventional expectations --GIGAZINE

Other lightning phenomena such as trolls, pixies, ghosts, and gnomes have been confirmed in the upper-atmospheric lightning discharge. It's unclear what the phenomenon Pesche shot was, but Science Alert says, 'Isn't it a phenomenon called the'blue starter'that is seen in the lower part of the stratosphere when lightning does not penetrate as high as the blue jet?' I expect it.

In any case, the upper-atmospheric lightning discharge is a phenomenon that can be confirmed only in a few milliseconds to a few seconds, and it occurs at high altitude and is hidden by clouds, so it is rare to shoot from the ground, Mr. Pesche. The photo is very valuable. 'The International Space Station is flying over the equator, where there is a lot of thunderstorms, so it is very suitable for observing upper-atmospheric lightning discharges,' said Peske. The principle of these upper-atmospheric lightning discharges is not clear.