“We call it megaflash lightning and we’re just now figuring out the mechanics of how and why it occurs,” study co-author and Arizona State University climatologist Randy Cerveny said in a statement.

Thunder isn’t just loud noise. Its pitch, rumble, and duration are shaped by the exact path lightning takes through the air. This video explores how the geometry of a lightning bolt directly ...

Though scientists have long understood how lightning strikes, the precise atmospheric events that trigger it within thunderclouds have remained a perplexing mystery. The mystery may now be solved, ...