Academic Scientific JournalsCharacteristics and mechanisms of generation of transient luminous events – a review
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.26881/prog.2023.12.03Keywords:
ionosphere, lightnings, sprites, elves, jetsAbstract
The plasma contained in the ionosphere enables the formation of many light phenomena. Apart from the aurora borealis, colourful and diverse transient luminous events can be observed in the ionosphere, the formation of which is very often associated with thunderstorm clouds and lightning. Among the types of discharges, we can distinguish quite rare positive ground discharges, some of which lead to the appearance of red-coloured sprites. If the discharge is strong enough, it can lead to an electromagnetic pulse causing elves, visible as circles of propagating red light. Among the well-studied transient luminous events, one can also distinguish jets, whose origin is related to the occurrence of an unbalanced charge in a storm cloud. Other, still poorly studied, light phenomena of the ionosphere include gnomes, pixies, trolls, and ghosts.
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