Sprites, or sylphs, are transient luminous phenomena (blue …

Sprites, or sylphs, are transient luminous phenomena (blue and red flashes) occurring at high altitudes above thunderstorms. Photographed from the International Space Station (ISS), these flashes, lasting only a few milliseconds, are invisible from the ground. They reveal filaments of light formed by the excitation of oxygen and nitrogen atoms in the ionosphere.