ScienceCasts: Dark Lightning

Researchers studying thunderstorms have made a surprising discovery: The lightning we see with our eyes has a dark competitor that discharges storm clouds and flings antimatter into space. Astrophysicists and meteorologists are scrambling to understand "dark lightning."

[erikgrahn]

nasa is the coolest shit the us government does
this is fascanating

[snozie]

"To shed new light on dark lightning" xP that was funny NASA, very funny :P

[sstrama]

Dark Lightning from earth clouds?! Wonderful presentation and thanks to NASA scientists. Dr. Shyam

[gymw]

Looking at this, it looks like "sprites"+ other bits assosciated.
Think of it like a cathode ray tube. The electron gun is Earth. The thundercloud is the shadow mask which some particles go through.
Is this what causes "Sporadic E" which propogates radio at High HF and VHF frequencies?

[jerry-Shor]

I love NASA.... have a such a nice information in a very educative way...
Bravo Nasa!

[md_free]

The implications of this are astounding, this will lead us to free energy and unlimited potential as a species.

[dev_ilmoon]

The title of this video, I interpreted as if Science was a wizard and he cast "Dark Lightning"

[rossim]

How can NASA make videos like this and NOT take the Electric Universe model seriously?

[Kazzimirski]

No, anti-matter (such as positrons and others) feel the same gravity as normal matter, so they are also pulled back towards earth. However these very small particles like electrons and positrons, are very light and so don't need a lot of energy (like e.g. from electric fields) to fly upwards. So this happens often for both positrons and alectrons (as in the video) and even other particles.

[deeliciousplum]

Thank you for sharing this most insightful vid on dark lightening.

[Dyslexic-Artist-Theory-on-Time]

This is an invitation to see an artist theory on the physics of light & time
Based on just two postulates
1 Is that the quantum wave particle function Ψ or probability function represents the forward passage of time itself with the future unfolding photon by photon
2 Is that Heisenberg’s Uncertainty Principle ∆×∆p×≥h/4π that is formed by the w-function is the same uncertainty we have with any future event within our own ref-frame that we can interact with turning the possible into the actual!

[MALCOLMACDOO]

now they know how to create anti matter with out all the particle accelerators and vacuum chambers.

[EQOAnostalgia]

Love these videos but i find it annoying when they talk like the listener is 5 years old. I guess they use these vids for schools...

[CoolHardLogic]

What's the connection between "Dark Lightning" and sprites, if any?

[ViperMD]

Excellent videos! Keep them coming. :)

[ROBINSONMARTE]

prueban que los físicos tenían bien fundados sus temores, aunque realmente la atmósfera de la Tierra no reaccionó en cadena con la primera deflagración atómica: ¿por qué no ocurrió así?, si aquí vemos que el aire atmosférico sostiene este gigantesco generador de fisión con una producción masiva de "antimateria", ¿tendrá que ver el que este colisionador natural lo hace en la atmósfera superior donde la atmósfera es diferente en muchos aspectos? También, sugiero otro provecho para este ciclotrón.

[ROBINSONMARTE]

así acelerados coliden con las moléculas del aire y a su vez produciendo rayos gamma y los rayos gammas se transforman en el par electrón-positrón, y ésos a su vez también interaccionan con más moléculas de aire creándose un ciclo que se repite como en un generador de fisión. Esta explicación demuestra que los temores de los físicos desarrolladores de las bombas nucleares era bien justificada; tenían el temor de que al probar la primera bomba atómica,

[horsiechick]

The only reason they do that is because it's required. I'm in school to be a teacher now and they stress that we have to include the objectives based on those standardized tests because the schools require it. But for a teacher to not be able to find an engaging lesson is their own fault. There are great teachers out there, and I hate that they all aren't. But don't think no teachers care just because you had a bad experience.

[MrHatt]

First - "mystery" is one of the great things about being a human, and its what makes the natural world, and life for that matter, worth living. Don't be such a downer.

Second- Are they saying its a new kind of matter? There's nothing new or magical about anti-matter, and its not the same thing as plasma.

[hollidaydarwin]

Holy Moly, I new Darwin, NT was the lightning capital of Australia, but now looks to be the "Dark Lightning" (AKA sprites) capital of the world!