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Credit & Copyright: Maxime Villaeys
Explanation:
The sprite and tree could hardly be more different.
To start, the red
sprite
is an unusual form of lightning, while the tree is a
common plant.
The sprite is
far away -- high in
Earth's atmosphere, while the tree is
nearby
-- only about a football field away.
The sprite is fast --
electrons streaming up and down at near
light's speed,
while the tree is slow -- wood anchored to the ground.
The sprite is bright -- lighting up the sky,
while the tree is dim -- shining mostly by reflected light.
The sprite was fleeting --
lasting only a small fraction of a second,
while the
tree is durable -- living now for many years.
Both however, when captured together, appear oddly similar in this
featured composite image
captured early this month in France as a thunderstorm passed over mountains of the
Atlantic Pyrenees.
Your Sky Surprise:
What picture did APOD feature on your birthday? (post 1995)
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: lightning
Publications with words: lightning
See also:
- APOD: 2023 October 2 Á Sprite Lightning in High Definition
- APOD: 2023 June 25 Á Lightning on Jupiter
- APOD: 2023 April 17 Á ELVES Lightning over Italy
- Star Trails and Lightning over the Pyrenees
- Red Sprite Lightning over the Czech Republic
- Gigantic Jet Lightning from Puerto Rico
- Lightning and Orion Beyond Uluru