The Strangest Lightning on Earth ⚡
For 30 years I’ve chased lightning around the world — and these are the greatest, rarest, and most bizarre lightning events I’ve ever captured on camera.
From failed upward leaders and bead lightning…
to upward lightning exploding off wind turbines…
to blue jets rocketing toward space…
to record-breaking megaflashes stretching hundreds of miles…
and even a case of lightning striking lightning.
Some of these events are beautiful.
Some are deadly.
Some are so strange they barely seem real.
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⚡ WHAT YOU'LL SEE IN THIS VIDEO
Close-range lightning strikes (and how cars actually protect you)
Failed upward leaders & bead lightning
Rare upward lightning from tall structures
Wild multi-bolts lightning events growing both upward and downward
An incredible blue jet over West Texas
Massive horizontally extensive flashes & anvil crawlers
World-record megaflash lightning
Lightning striking lightning
Sprites & green ghosts (Transient Luminous Events)
Electrified supercell time-lapses
Smooth channel lightning
And last but least, ball lightning
BLUE JETS AND TRANSIENT LUMINOUS EVENTS
NHK once asked if I could capture a blue jet for a television special. I had never seen one. After studying case histories and scientific papers with Paul Smith, we forecasted the right setup and headed to West Texas. Five minutes later, a sapphire jet of light blasted from the top of a thunderstorm into the upper atmosphere. Blue jets are part of a family of upper-atmospheric lightning known as Transient Luminous Events (TLEs) — which also include sprites and green ghosts.
Record-Breaking Megaflash
World Meteorological Organization certified a lightning megaflash stretching 829 km (515 miles) on October 22, 2017 — roughly the distance from Dallas to Kansas City. These horizontally extensive flashes can travel hundreds of kilometers through massive storm complexes, making them some of the most extreme electrical events on Earth.
Sprites are massive red discharges that bloom above thunderstorms. If you look closely, faint green glows sometimes linger above them. These TLE's are called green ghosts.
BALL LIGHTNING
Ball lightning has been reported for centuries — glowing orbs floating through rooms, drifting down streets, even passing through walls. Despite security cameras and smartphones covering nearly every square mile of Earth, solid evidence remains elusive. Recently I captured something during a thunderstorm that looked convincing — until we zoomed out and revealed the real explanation: a cloud-to-ground strike interacting with infrastructure and a rolling shutter artifact. Extraordinary claims demand extraordinary evidence.
A NOT ON LIGHTNING SAFETY
Lightning kills an estimated 24,000 people globally each year. Vehicles generally protect occupants due to the Faraday cage effect — current travels around the metal exterior — but no vehicle is perfect. If thunder roars, go indoors.
STORM CHASING SINCE 1994
I captured my first lightning strike on film in 1994 and have been hooked ever since. Every storm is a reminder that the sky is still full of surprises.
If you enjoy deep dives into extreme weather and rare atmospheric phenomena, subscribe and join me on the next chase.
Happy trails ⚡
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