Ball lightning is a rare and poorly understood atmospheric phenomenon that appears as a glowing ball of varying sizes. Reports of it date back to ancient Greece, but there is no scientifically confirmed video. The prevailing theory is the atmospheric maser theory, but it has not been replicated in a laboratory.
Ball lightning is an extremely rare and poorly understood atmospheric phenomenon that accompanies electrical storms. It manifests as a glowing ball about the size of a basketball, but sometimes as small as a golf ball or as large as a small car. It hovers in the air for a few seconds to a couple of minutes, averaging 25 seconds, then disappears silently or with a loud bang. Some scientists have studied this lightning for over 20 years and are still uncertain that it really exists.
The phenomenon is so rare that not even a single scientifically confirmed video exists, although most scientists accept its existence because reports of it extend as far back as ancient Greece. It’s also supportive that most of the reports scientists have tell a fairly consistent story, instead of varying dramatically, as one would expect if this form of lightning were simply a misidentification of more common atmospheric phenomena. When details vary too much from the most common reports, it is likely due to misidentification, wishful thinking or fraud. It is plausible, however, that so-called ball lightning is simply a positive afterimage left in the eye in the wake of a flash.
A newspaper in 1960 conducted an informal survey and found that 5% of respondents said they had witnessed ball lightning, although the true figure is probably much lower. If a relatively large number of people really witnessed this type of lightning on a regular basis, there would likely be video footage. However, reports keep coming in and it is sometimes considered a UFO – an unidentified flying object – something in the sky that cannot be easily identified.
The current prevailing physical theory for ball lightning is the atmospheric maser theory. Large clouds of charged water molecules are excited by electrical activity, briefly causing light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation or the laser effect. Before this can be confirmed as the real cause, however, it must first be replicated in a laboratory, which has not yet happened. There may come a day when scientists can be sure that this lightning is a real phenomenon, but unfortunately for enthusiasts, that day has not yet come.
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