NASA's Fermi Catches Gamma-ray Flashes from Tropical Storms

About a thousand times a day, thunderstorms fire off fleeting bursts of some of the highest-energy light naturally found on Earth. These events, called terrestrial gamma-ray flashes (TGFs), last less than a millisecond and produce gamma rays with tens of millions of times the energy of visible light. Since its launch in 2008, NASA's Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope has recorded more than 4,000 TGFs, which scientists are studying to better understand how the phenomenon relates to lightning activity, storm strength and the life cycle of storms.

Credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center

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[teemum.]

0:25 why do snow and ice particles rise, or are they water vapor which freezes at high altitude?

[Tlactl]

I find it cool how the satellite was meant to look at space but they later used it to look at Earth as well

[MrBrelindm]

That the phenomena seems tethered to the equator one could infer that the equatorial ion fountain is the prime input. It's telling that weaker storms are more prolific progenitors of TGFs as it's the bulk electric current in the local loop of the global electric circuit that gooses them into high gear! And so the pump is primed at the equator for this phenomenon and that is indeed what we see.

[Steel]

How powerful are these TGFs compared to Gamma ray emissions of cosmic orgins ?

[jasonunwin]

WOW!!! I didn't know that! :-) Thanks for the information.

[juancarlosocampo]

Great Congreatturetion for yuoerfells is wonderfulls.view iths. Enlaces Intteresantings.

[juancarlosocampo]

happiness in the Area of the face of the planet. in studies.

[teemum.]

Can we create a power source from gamma energy by accelerated electrons and water molecules?