The American astronaut Nichole “Vapor” Ayers captured a spectacular vision of a phenomenon known as a “sprite” that comes to life on an intense power storm, and she did it while orbing 250 miles (400 kilometers) on earth on earth on earth on earth on earth
“Sprites are Trules or transient light events, which occur on the clouds and are activated by intense electrical activity in the thunderstorms below,” Ayers wrote in an X publication that shows the image. “We have a great view of the clouds, so scientists can use this type of images to improve training, characteristics and relationship or thunderstorms.”
Fair. Wow. While we get used to Mexico and the United States this morning, I caught this sprite. Sprites are luminous events of Tles or Trant, which occur above the clouds and are activated by intense electrical activity in the storms below. We have a great view on the clouds, so … pic.twitter.com/dcqirn3vraJuly 3, 2025
Vivid and multicolored sprites are among the less understood and visual electrical phenomena that are known by the manifesto in the upper atmosphere of the earth, the events of thunderstorms. Usually, approximately 50 miles (80 km) occur above the planet surface following powerful rays, assuming a variety of forms of another world composed of complex characteristics and shackles and feathers of red light.
So, Sprite Ayers gigantic managed to witness is a particularly impressive specimen, seen that rises above the clouds illuminated by lightning and stepping on the upper atmosphere of the Earth on Mexico and the United States all the cities of ligtids emitted from Swesis light.
Around the few years, NASA has been working on the “Spritacular” citizen project, which asks the members of the public to contribute with TLE sightings images in an attempt to provide the scientific data that can be used to decode the phenomenon.
These efforts are now reinforced by orbital images of the spectacular events, even by multiple astronauts aboard the ISS, which, like Ayers, have adopted photography as a creative exit that changes their time at the station.
Many questions certainly persist around the nature of sprites, how and why they form and how they interact with the surrounding atmosphere, but maybe they will have some answers soon.
Editor’s note: If you capture an image of a sprite or TLE and want to share it with the readers of Space.com, send your photos, comments and your name and location to spacephotos@space.com.
