Two astrophotographers captured over 100 vibrant red sprites on a single night near the sacred lake of Pumoyongcuo, sparking new research into the rare atmospheric phenomena. The photos, taken by Angel An and Shuchang Dong in May 2022, won the “Skyscapes” category at the Royal Observatory Greenwich’s Astronomy Photographer of the Year competition.
Researchers from China’s University of Science and Technology, led by Gaopeng Lu, set out to study the red sprites. However, they encountered a challenge: the astrophotographers’ recordings lacked timestamps. To overcome this, Lu’s team used a creative approach. By matching the coordinates of 95 sprites with satellite trajectories and star chart positions, they pinpointed each electrical event’s time to within a one-second margin of error.
The study revealed that the red sprites were triggered by high-peak current positive cloud-to-ground lightning strikes within a massive mesoscale convective system. This discovery has significant implications for understanding regional thunderstorms in the future, including their physical and chemical attributes. The team’s findings suggest that thunderstorms in the Himalayas may produce some of Earth’s most complex and intense upper-atmospheric electrical discharges.
The novel timestamping approach developed by Lu’s team is not limited to red sprite research, making it accessible to citizen scientists and meteorological experts alike. This breakthrough marks a significant step forward in unraveling the mysteries of these rare atmospheric phenomena.
Source: https://www.popsci.com/environment/what-causes-red-sprites