Sprite Sightings

Severe stormy weather over central Europe brings one of the most spectacular but also mysterious phenomena: The Red Sprites. Firstly observed in 1989, they became a target for many specialized photographers and videographers to improve their understanding of them. So far we know now is the fact, the fragments-of-seconds flashes are counter-discharge of CG+ lightning above massive thunderstorms (nitrogen emissions ), usually in altitude between 50 and 95 km. On 14th July 2021 (abou 22:20 UTC), despite the misty weather over Proseč, the Czech Republic, I caught one of them on my camera as large thunderstorms were located above about 320 km distant High Tatras of Slovakia. What a lucky shot!

Canon Ra, Sigma 50mm, f1.4, ISO 2000, 6s exposure from tripod