Scientists have long understood why lightning forms, but the atomic processes at the core of the phenomenon have remained largely a mystery—especially the strange mechanics behind terrestrial ...

The crack of lightning has always seemed straightforward — clouds build up electric charge, and eventually, it snaps. But the chain of events that lights the sky has remained an atmospheric puzzle for ...

Though scientists have long understood how lightning strikes, the precise atmospheric events that trigger it within thunderclouds have remained a perplexing mystery. The mystery may now be solved, ...

These brief bursts blue jets, red sprites, ELVES are collectively termed transient luminous events, or TLEs. They explode tens of kilometers high over thunderstorms, in the rarefied atmosphere of the ...

Cosmic rays, high‐energy particles from extraterrestrial sources, continuously bombard the Earth, providing a natural probe of astrophysical processes. When these particles interact with the ...

An intense thunderstorm system moved into Southern California from northern Mexico on Tuesday morning, Sept. 2, bringing scattered rain and the potential for more storms throughout the day. The ...

Florida led the U.S. in lightning strikes per square mile in 2024 and had five of the nation's 12 lightning fatalities. People are most often struck by lightning while fishing, at the beach, or ...

Here’s what you’ll learn when you read this story: Scientists have long understood why lightning forms, but the atomic processes at the core of the phenomenon have remained largely a ...