Astronaut Snaps Rare Red Sprite from Space, Boosting Atmospheric Event Research

Astronaut Captures Elusive Red 'Sprite' in Space, Aiding Atmospheric Research

While orbiting above North America, NASA astronaut Nichole Ayers documented a rare and stunning atmospheric phenomenon: glowing red lights shimmering in Earth's upper atmosphere. This event, known as a Transient Luminous Event (TLE) or "sprite," manifested as a fleeting burst of red light above thunderstorms over Mexico and the United States.

Astronaut Nichole Ayers captures a red sprite from the International Space Station.

Sprites are brief flashes of red light that occur high above powerful thunderstorms. These massive bursts of electrical energy can extend up to 100 kilometers above Earth’s surface and are composed of “cold plasma,” similar to the glow inside a fluorescent light.

Due to their altitude and fleeting nature, sprites are rarely visible from the ground, making Ayers’ space-based capture particularly significant.

Sharing the image on social media, Ayers exclaimed, “Just. Wow. As we went over Mexico and the U.S. this morning, I caught this sprite.”

She further explained, “Sprites are TLEs or Transient Luminous Events, that happen above the clouds and are triggered by intense electrical activity in the thunderstorms below.”

Sprites have intrigued scientists and pilots for decades. These brief, jellyfish-shaped flashes shoot upward into the atmosphere and disappear in milliseconds. For nearly a century, pilots reported seeing them, but many scientists dismissed these accounts as myths or optical illusions. This perception shifted in 1989 when the first clear image of a sprite was accidentally captured on camera.

NASA explains that sprites occur when strong lightning discharges interact with Earth’s ionosphere. As the discharge travels upward and interacts with nitrogen molecules, it produces a reddish glow. Sprites are part of a broader category of upper-atmosphere phenomena that includes blue jets and red elves.

The image shared by Ayers sparked amazement and curiosity online. One user commented, “Sprite.... one of the rarest of rare celestial phenomenon.”

Another inquired about the duration and altitude of the sprite, highlighting the vastness of what remains unknown: “How long do the sprites last? Is this a still shot taken from a video? What altitude did this one reach? The more we find out, it becomes obvious we know far less than we thought.”