Simeon SchmaußJul 19

On July 3rd, astronaut Nichole Ayers photographed a rare Gigantic jet from the ISS. These upward directed electrical discharges extend 90-100 km high into the atmosphere.

I processed this image from the RAW file, adjusting the white balance, contrast and noise reduction.

Full resolution: https://flic.kr/p/2rhxqcK

Image Credit: Nichole Ayers / NASA JSC / ESRS / Simeon Schmauß

#ISS #lightning #thunderstorm #Photography #giganticjet #tle #transientluminousevent #NASA

Show threadZeeshan Ali Khan  🇺🇦Jul 19
@stim3on super cool! Curious how does it work though. What's it discharging to? 🤔
Show threadZeeshan Ali Khan  🇺🇦Jul 19
@stim3on oh the ionosphere I guess?
Show threadSimeon Schmauß
@zeenix Yeah, the mesosphere/ionosphere. This can happen when a large lighting bolt discharges into the ground, rapidly changing the polarity of the cloud. This creates a potential to the ionosphere that will discharge as a red sprite or sometimes a gigantic jet like this. Though these phenomena are not fully understood yet.
Here is also a nice explainer video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGPQ5kzJ9Tg
Red Sprites and Blue Jets Explained - New Discovery!

YouTube
Jul 19 at 6:09pmWeb