red sprites are best seen from space.

Image courtesy google

Sprites have been observed from the ground and aircraft. However, the preferred observation method is from outer space due to the sprites occurring above the cloud tops and the low altitude of the ISS offering pristine views of these unique lightning features

Yes, red sprites are best seen from space. They are massive electrical discharges in the Earth’s upper atmosphere. They are also known as cloud-to-space lightning.

Red sprites are best seen from space because they occur above the cloud tops. The International Space Station (ISS) offers pristine views of these unique lightning features. 

Here are some tips for observing red sprites: 

  • Find a location with a good view of the horizon 
  • The further away from the city lights, the better 
  • Choose a dark night with no moonlight 
  • To photograph a sprite, you need a dark sky and a clear view toward a distant thunderstorm 

Red sprites are rare, accounting for only 5 percent of all lightning phenomena. They were first photographed in 1989.

Red sprites are difficult to observe with the naked eye because of their very short duration, on the order of a fraction of a second. For this reason they are not easily observable without adequate instrumentation. This is why they are considered very rare phenomena.

Red sprites are difficult to spot because they only last a fraction of a second. They are also often obscured by thick clouds

Red sprites are a type of transient luminous event (TLE). They are large but weak luminous flashes that appear directly above an active thunderstorm system. They are often triggered by a strong, positive bolt of ordinary lightning near the ground

Sprites are a type of electrical discharge that can occurs high above thunderstorm clouds. They are a type of transient luminous event (TLE) that can be observed from the ground, typically as a brief, faint, and reddish-orange flash of light that appears above a thunderstorm cloud

Yes, sprites have been observed from the ground and from aircraft. However, they are not visible to the naked eye because they occur at high altitudes. They appear as dim, gray structures and can appear relatively small from the ground

Sprites have been observed in: 

  • North America 
  • Africa 
  • Australia 
  • South and Central America 
  • Temperate and tropical regions

They are usually triggered by the discharges of positive lightning between an underlying thundercloud and the ground. Sprites appear as luminous red-orange flashes. They often occur in clusters above the troposphere at an altitude range of 50–90 km (31–56 mi).

To observe red sprites from the ground, you need: 

  • A clear view of a powerful thunderstorm with positive lightning between the cloud and ground 
  • A red-sensitive recording device 
  • A dark, unlit sky 
  • Long exposure times 

To photograph a sprite, you need a dark sky and a clear view toward a distant thunderstorm. Too much stray light will wash out your photo. 

Red sprites are mostly red and usually last no more than a few milliseconds.  They can resemble jellyfish, carrots, or columns.  The red color comes from energized nitrogen gas in the atmosphere. Sprites can also look purple in low altitudes. 

In order to film sprites from Earth, special conditions must be present: 150–500 km (93–311 mi) of clear view to a powerful thunderstorm with positive lightning between cloud and ground, red-sensitive recording equipment, and a black unlit sky

To photograph red sprites from the ground, you can use a red-sensitive recording device. You can also use a specialized event-based camera, like the Davis camera. 

Here are some tips for photographing red sprites: 

  • Use a tripod 
  • Use a camera with an ISO of 3200 or 6400 
  • Use a lens with an aperture of f2 or lower 
  • Take consecutive photos or frames without gaps 
  • Use a shutter speed of 1/24th of a second for 24 frames per second 
  • Use an intervalometer 
  • Protect the camera from the elements

The discovery of the phenomenon, now known as a sprite, was first documented on video tape recorded the night of July 6, 1989. Dr. John Winckler and associates at the University of Minnesota were conducting a cross calibration experiment of various optical sensors intended for a sounding rocket flight

The first image of a red sprite was captured in 1989 by scientists at the University of Minnesota while testing a low-light video camera. However, red sprites were officially discovered in the early 1990s when NASA’s space shuttlescaptured the first clear images of the phenomenon

The earliest known report of a red sprite was in 1886 by Toynbee and Mackenzie. In 1925, Nobel laureate C. T. R. Wilson proposed an explanation for the phenomenon, based on an electrical breakdown in the upper atmosphere. In 1956, Wilson witnessed what possibly could have been a sprite. 

For decades, red sprites were thought to be hallucinations reported by weary pilots. Atmospheric scientists mostly discounted these claims.

Sprites or red sprites are large-scale electric discharges that occur in the mesosphere, high above thunderstorm clouds, or cumulonimbus, giving rise to a varied range of visual shapes flickering in the night sky

The name “red sprite” is an acronym for Stratospheric Mesospheric Perturbations Resulting from Intense Thunderstorm Electrification

One theory is that the thunderstorm that creates the sprite changes the upper atmosphere’s shape through gravity waves. Gravity waves are caused by gravity pulling buoyant air downward. 

Another theory is that sprites are a balancing mechanism that the atmosphere uses to dispense charges vertically. This process happens quickly, taking less than a tenth of a second

Red sprites are caused by a strong lightning strike that creates an electric field above a thunderstorm.  This electric field accelerates electrons, which produces light at high altitudes.  The lightning is so strong that it breaks apart molecules in the atmosphere, forming a cold plasma cloud. The red color of sprites likely comes from ions in the plasma cloud smashing into other molecules in the air. 

The upper portion of sprites are red, while the lower tendrils are red to blue. The colors are caused by the excitation of molecular nitrogen(full article source google)

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