Scientists have captured something that had only ever been theorized before.
During a thunderstorm, researchers observed purple sparks shooting from the tops of trees. These faint electrical discharges, known as corona discharges, happen when the electric field in the air becomes extremely strong just before or during lightning.
Meteorologists at Penn State were able to document the phenomenon using specialized ultraviolet cameras, which can detect energy that the human eye normally can’t see.
For years, scientists suspected this was happening during storms, but this is the first time it has actually been recorded. 🌩️✨