Astronaut Captures Rare “Gigantic Jet” Lightning Blasting 50 Miles Into Space – The Daily Galaxy –Great Discoveries Channel

An astronaut aboard the ISS captured a rare gigantic jet of upward-shooting lightning over New Orleans, revealing one of Earth’s most mysterious electrical phenomena.A stunning and rare lightning phenomenon was caught on camera by an astronaut aboard the International Space Station (ISS), revealing a gigantic jet of electricity shooting 50 miles into space from a thunderstorm over Louisiana. The image, taken on November 19, 2024, provides a rare glimpse of one of Earth’s tallest lightning discharges, a type of atmospheric electrical event that scientists are still working to understand.Unlike typical lightning bolts that strike downward toward the ground, gigantic jets blast upward, extending beyond storm clouds and into the ionosphere, the electrically charged layer of Earth’s atmosphere. These jets are incredibly powerful, carrying up to 60 times more energy than regular lightning bolts, and remain one of the most mysterious weather phenomena on the planet.The image, originally taken by an unnamed ISS astronaut, was discovered in NASA’s Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth database by photographer Frankie Lucena, a specialist in capturing lightning sprites and atmospheric phenomena. Lucena shared the image with Spaceweather.com, which then resurfaced the event on February 26, 2025, bringing attention to the spectacular sight.According to Live Science, the exact location of the gigantic jet is unclear due to cloud cover, but based on the ISS’s position at the time, it likely occurred just off the coast of New Orleans. The image was part of a series of four lightning photos, but only one of them captured the massive upward discharge.Gigantic jets were first documented in 2001, and while they are believed to happen as frequently as 1,000 times per year, only a few dozen have ever been photographed. The reason? They are incredibly brief, lasting less than a second, and often occur in remote areas where storms are difficult to monitor.Unlike traditional lightning, which occurs between charged layers in a storm cloud, gigantic jets break through the upper cloud layer when the balance of electrical charges is disrupted. Because they reach the ionosphere, the same region where auroras occur, they often produce a brilliant blue glow, with tendrils of red lightning resembling deep-sea jellyfish-like structures.These upper-atmosphere electrical discharges are distinct from sprites, another type of atmospheric lightning that appears as red flashes high above thunderstorms. While sprites are more common and better understood, gigantic jets remain a scientific mystery, with researchers still debating how and why they form.Gigantic jets are not only visually spectacular but also extraordinarily powerful. The strongest one ever documented occurred over Oklahoma in May 2018, reaching a temperature of 8,000 degrees Fahrenheit (4,400 degrees Celsius) and carrying 60 times more energy than a standard lightning bolt.Because they extend into space, scientists are interested in whether gigantic jets could affect satellites, radio communications, or even space weather itself. Some researchers speculate that these high-energy discharges could play a role in balancing Earth’s electrical environment, though much remains unknown.While this latest discovery was made months after the event occurred, it underscores how much Earth’s upper-atmosphere phenomena remain unexplored. Thanks to new technology and better observational methods, scientists are becoming more capable of detecting fleeting, high-energy events that were once impossible to capture.As researchers continue to study gigantic jets and other exotic lightning phenomena, each new image taken from space brings us closer to understanding the hidden electrical forces at play in Earth’s atmosphere—and perhaps even beyond.Comment Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

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