Published in Physics World, 19 Apr 2010
The first evidence that thunderstorms can function as huge natural particle accelerators has been collected by an international team of researchers.
In a presentation at a meeting of the Royal Astronomical Society in Glasgow last week, Martin Füllekrug of Bath University described how the team detected radio waves coinciding with the appearance of “sprites” – glowing orbs that occasionally flicker into existence above thunderstorms. The radio waves suggest the sprites can accelerate nearby electrons, creating a beam with the same power as a small nuclear power plant. […]
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