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Illustration of St. Elmo's fire on a ship at sea Electrostatic discharge flashes across the windscreen of a KC-10 cockpit.. St. Elmo's fire (also called witchfire or witch's fire) [1] is a weather phenomenon in which luminous plasma is created by a corona discharge from a rod-like object such as a mast, spire, chimney, or animal horn [2] in an atmospheric electric field.
Ball lightning is often erroneously identified as St. Elmo's Fire, whereas they are separate and distinct phenomena. [26] Although referred to as "fire", St. Elmo's Fire is, in fact, plasma, and is observed, usually during a thunderstorm, at the tops of trees, spires or other tall objects, or on the heads of animals, as a brush or star of light.
Pilots evacuating in preparation for Hurricane Idalia observed bright blue light outside their aircraft, an event called St. Elmo’s fire. Here’s what causes it.
Ball lightning is a possible source of legends that describe luminous balls, such as the mythological Anchimayen from Argentinean and Chilean Mapuche culture.. According to a statistical investigation carried out in 1960, of 1,962 Oak Ridge National Laboratory monthly role personnel, and of all 15,923 Union Carbide Nuclear Company personnel in Oak Ridge, found 5.6% and 3.1% respectively ...
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The electrical discharges at the mastheads of ships were read as a sign of his protection and came to be called "Saint Elmo's Fire". [36] [37] Thus, Saint Elmo's Fire was usually good luck in traditional sailor's lore, but because it is a sign of electricity in the air and interferes with compass readings, sailors sometimes regarded it as an ...
The Royal Air Force’s 99 Squadron has released a video showing the phenomenon known as St Elmo’s Fire developing at the nose of a C-17 Globemaster plane during a recent nighttime flight near ...
Corona discharges can also happen in weather, such as thunderstorms, where objects like ship masts or airplane wings have a charge significantly different from the air around them (St. Elmo's fire). In many high-voltage applications, corona is an unwanted side effect.