A red spectrum photographed from the Space Station

A rare red spectre , appearing in the sky above the Earth like a gigantic and evanescent jellyfish with long tentacles: this rare and mysterious atmospheric phenomenon, which occurs above the most intense thunderstorms and which is still little understood, was photographed by the American astronaut Nichole Ayers , currently on her first mission aboard the International Space Station, who posted the shot on X.

Just. Wow. As we went over Mexico and the US this morning, I caught this sprite. Sprites are TLEs or Transient Luminous Events, that happen above the clouds and are triggered by intense electrical activity in the thunderstorms below. We have a great view above the clouds, so… pic.twitter.com/dCqIrn3vrA

— Nichole “Vapor” Ayers (@Astro_Ayers) July 3, 2025

"The spectra are Transient Luminous Events, or TLEs , that occur above the clouds and are triggered by intense electrical activity in thunderstorms below," Ayers wrote in his post. "We have a fantastic view above the clouds, so scientists can use these images to better understand the formation and characteristics of TLEs , and their relationship to thunderstorms."

The spectrum 'captured' by the ISS is a particularly spectacular specimen due to its size: it rises well above the lightning-lit clouds, penetrating the upper part of the Earth's atmosphere, and rivals in brightness the cities below .

The photo published on X also received a comment from another astronaut, Don Pettit, who returned to Earth last April after his last mission aboard the Space Station: "To take a photo like this - Pettit writes - it takes skill in configuring the camera, but above all it takes knowledge of which storm systems are most likely to generate spectra and the will to take 2,000 to 5,000 images - concludes the astronaut - of which only one will record the spectrum ".