Trees Fire Off Ultraviolet Sparkles During Thunderstorms, Scientists Confirm
Gizmodo • • general
Key Points:
- In summer 2024, researchers from Pennsylvania State University captured the first-ever footage of coronae—brief, colorful electrical glows—on tree leaves during thunderstorms in North Carolina.
- Coronae, long theorized but never observed in nature, are weak electrical discharges that occur when a thunderstorm's charge induces an opposite charge in the ground, causing sparks at leaf tips.
- Using specialized equipment including an ultraviolet camera mounted on a modified minivan, the team recorded 41 coronae events over 90 minutes, with glows lasting about three seconds and hopping between leaves.
- The study found coronae on multiple tree species across storms from Florida to Pennsylvania, indicating these electrical discharges are more common than previously thought but too
