Italian photographer Valter Binotto captured a seemingly unreal image—one where two rare forms of red lightning shot into the sky like something out of science fiction. In fact, he compared the scene to the film Independence Day. Upon photographing the scene, it reminded him of the moment in the movie when the alien ship destroys the U.S. White House. “It was more or less like this real photo of lightning in the upper atmosphere I took on November 26th from Possagno,” he shares.
So much of photography is being in the right place at the right time. And when you’re there, you have to have the technical know-how to faithfully capture what you see. Binotto was certainly in a fortunate position to view a rare double formation of sprites and ELVE, and he knew what to do with the opportunity: photograph it with the split seconds he had. “The sprites are the red tentacled objects in the center,” he explains. “The red ‘flying saucer’ surrounding them is the ELVE.”
This spectacular event—and the resulting awe-inspiring photo—were triggered by a single lightning strike over the Adriatic Sea about 350 kilometers (218 miles) away. Binotto continues with a technical explanation. “The positive lightning strike had a peak current of 387 kA, about 10 times higher than that of a normal lightning strike,” he says. “The ELVES are of particular interest because they are very rare. ELVES occur when an unusually powerful lightning strike generates an intense electromagnetic pulse (EMP). The red ring indicates where the EMP struck the Earth’s ionosphere. Thanks to the stars present, I was able to measure the ELVES’ altitude at about 85 kilometers (53 miles) and their diameter at about 230 kilometers (142 miles).”
So, how does this compare to the power and force brought by the aliens in Independence Day? “According to the movie script, the mothership had a diameter of 550 kilometers (342), so this ELVE was a minor but worthy rival.”
Photographer Valter Binotto caught sight of two rare forms of red lightning in the sky. This isn’t the first time he’s seen red lightning in the upper atmosphere. In 2023, he photographed ELVES.
