NASA Captured Green Lightning on Jupiter

A NASA spacecraft took a photo that is leaving many stunned. The image is an eerie shot from Jupiter, where neon green lighting is visible in the shape of a glowing orb. Along with it, the space agency offered an explanation about the color of the lightning bolt.

The green glow was observed in a vortex.

NASA’s Juno mission had quite the view on December 30, 2020. As it completed its 31st close flyby of Jupiter, it came across a vortex near the planet’s north pole. The JunoCam, which was 19.900 miles (32.000 kilometers) above Jupiter’s cloud tops, then captured the vortex and a green orb featured in it, which NASA specialists have now confirmed to be lightning.

However, it was only in 2022 that the fascinating image was processed by Kevin M. Gill, someone who NASA refers to as a “citizen scientist.” And recently, NASA revealed Juno’s orbits would put it close to the giant planet’s night side, allowing for more chances to catch Jupiter’s lightning on camera.

How the lightning bolt likely would look from up close:

Green lightning bolts also occur here on Earth, but we don’t often get to witness them as they usually stay hidden in clouds. However, Jupiter’s lightning is different from what happens on our planet, according to NASA. While on Earth, lightning bolts stem from water clouds. They are more frequent near the equator; on Jupiter, the phenomenon originates “in clouds containing an ammonia-water solution and can be seen most often near the poles.”

Although other planets constantly surprise us with mind-blowing phenomena, so does our own! Planet Earth is full of natural wonders that most have never heard of. For example, 3 lakes in Indonesia constantly change colors, and the reason behind it is fascinating.