[TCML] Ball Lightning

["S&JY" <youngs@xxxxxxxxx>]

All,

This was just published-I thought some of you would be interested.
Personally, I believe ball lightning is a real, physical phenomena, not
something induced into people's brains.

Steve Y.

 

ScienceDaily (May 19, 2010) - Ball lightning is a rare circular light
phenomenon occurring during thunderstorms. Scientists have been puzzled by
the nature of these apparent fire balls for a long time. Now physicists at
the University of Innsbruck have calculated that the magnetic field of long
lightning strokes may produce the image of luminous shapes, also known as
phosphenes, in the brain. This finding may offer an explanation for many
ball lightning observations.

Physicists Josef Peer and Alexander Kendl from the University of Innsbruck
have studied electromagnetic fields of different types of lightning strokes
occurring during thunderstorms. Their calculations suggest that the magnetic
fields of a specific class of long lasting repetitive lightning discharges
show the same properties as transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), a
technique commonly used in clinical and psychiatric practice to stimulate
neural activity in the human brain. Time varying and sufficiently strong
magnetic fields induce electrical fields in the brain, specifically, in
neurons of the visual cortex, which may invoke phosphenes. "In the clinical
application of TMS, luminous and apparently real visual perceptions in
varying shapes and colors within the visual field of the patients and test
persons are reported and well examined," says Alexander Kendl. The Innsbruck
physicists have now calculated that a near lightning stroke of long lasting
thunderbolts may also generate these luminous visions, which are likely to
appear as ball lightning.

Their findings are published in the journal Physics Letters A.

Is the mystery of ball lightning solved now?

Ball lightnings are rather rare events. The majority of researchers agree
that different phenomena are likely to be summarized under the collective
term "ball lightning." Over time, various theories and propositions about
the nature of these experiences have been suggested. Other researchers have
produced luminous fire balls in the laboratory, which appeared not
completely unlike ball lightning and could explain some of the observations
but were mostly too short lived. Other plausible explanations for some of
observations are St. Elmo's fire, luminous dust balls or small molten balls
of metal. In which cases then, can a lightning bolt invoke a ball-shaped
phosphene? "

Lightning strokes with repetitive discharges producing stimulating magnetic
fields over a period of a few seconds are rather rare and only occur in
about one in one hundred events," reports physicist Kendl. "An observer
located within few hundred metres of a long lightning stroke may experience
a magnetic phosphene in the shape of a luminous spot." Also other
sensations, such as noises or smells, may be induced. Since the term "ball
lightning" is well known from media reports, observers are likely to
classify lightning phosphenes as such. Alexander Kendl's hypothesis that in
fact the majority of ball lightning observations are phosphenes is strongly
supported by its simplicity: "Contrary to other theories describing floating
fire balls, no new and other suppositions are necessary."

 

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