A stunning atmospheric phenomenon known as an “elve” was captured on November 17, 2023, by photographer Valter Binotto over the northern Italian Alps. This extraordinary event, which lasted less than a thousandth of a second, produced a colossal glowing red ring that illuminated the night sky.
Binotto, who resides in the small town of Possagno, managed to photograph the elve while aiming to capture sprites, brief electrical discharges that occur above thunderstorms. The elve appeared in the sky above the foothills of the Alps during a thunderstorm occurring approximately 300 kilometers away in Vernazza. “I didn’t capture any sprites, but fortunately, I managed to capture this elve!” Binotto remarked in an email to Space.com.
Understanding the Elve Phenomenon
Elves are rare and fleeting flashes of upper atmospheric lightning that can expand to diameters of up to 300 miles (480 kilometers). According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), these phenomena occur high above thunderstorms when a powerful electromagnetic pulse is released into the ionosphere, where auroras also form.
The elve observed by Binotto was generated by a powerful negative lightning strike, which reached an impressive -303 kilo-ampères. For context, typical lightning carries only 10 to 30 kilo-ampères of current. The pulse from this lightning created a brief but dramatic display, illuminating the ionosphere and resulting in the glowing red halo that Binotto captured. The elve hovered approximately 100 miles (160 kilometers) above the Earth’s surface, spanning around 200 miles (320 kilometers) in diameter.
Binotto utilized a Sony A7S camera with a 20 mm f/1.8 lens set to an ISO of 51,200 to capture the moment. The image he took is a single frame from a video recorded at 25 frames per second.
A Previous Encounter with Elves
This latest sighting is not Binotto’s first encounter with the elusive elve phenomenon. Earlier in the year, on March 23, 2023, he captured another dramatic elve from his home in Possagno. This earlier photograph showcased the structure of the elve in greater detail, highlighting the remarkable characteristics of this fleeting event.
Binotto’s work stands as a testament to the beauty and mystery of atmospheric phenomena, reminding us that even in our technologically advanced age, nature can still surprise us in profound ways.
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