The sprite before Christmas
Image: Someone decked the skies with boughs of sprites.The red jellyfish in the sky is a unique red sprite high above a storm across the southern plains of the United States.Taken in the early hours of 21 October by outdoor photographer Paul Smith, red sprites, along with blue jets and elves, are elusive electrical discharges in the upper atmosphere that are difficult to study as they occur over thunderstorms and propagate out into space. “There were some very strong events and many dancing sprites as the storms matured,” says Paul.“I was so amazed to capture some very bright reflections in the lake I was shooting from. I was out until the early hours of the morning and got home at 5:00, but so worth it!” The photo was taken from Lake Acadia, Oklahoma. Watch a video of the storm here.Sightings of these elusive high altitude optical phenomena had long been based on hearsay...