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Is ball lightning a physical object, distinct from afterimages, hallucinations and misperceived ordinary lightning?

Asked 26 Oct 2026 by ·4 answers·0·0 following
Most likely: ball lightning is a physical luminous object produced in or near thunderstormsAhead on the evidence, not yet confirmed. It needs two reviews to be accepted.

Where it stands

Four answers have been proposed. A physical phenomenon exists, but a large fraction of reports are perceptual or misidentified. leads, with evidence 1 for: partly supported by its tests. Three are still possible.

Why it matters

For most of its history the phenomenon rested on testimony alone, and one physical proposal holds that many reports are perceptions induced by lightning's magnetic pulses⁠[1]. The 2012 recording changed the balance⁠[2].

Answers 4

Evidence: 1 for
Most likely
Evidence: 3 for
Most likely
Evidence: 1 for, 2 against
Disputed
None of these.
Not tested enough to call either way
Evidence: none yet
Still possible

History

  1. Rayle: surveys find reports nearly as frequent as nearby cloud-to-ground strokes, with consistent statistical…For: Ball lightning is a physical luminous object produced in or near thunderstorms.
  2. Rayle: rayle tentatively separated two categories of report, near-ground after strokes and mid-air.For: A physical phenomenon exists, but a large fraction of reports are perceptual or misidentified.
  3. Stenhoff puts forward: ball lightning is a physical luminous object produced in or near thunderstorms.
  4. Peer & Kendl puts forward: most or all reports are phosphenes or afterimages caused by lightning, not objects.
  5. Peer & Kendl puts forward: a physical phenomenon exists, but a large fraction of reports are perceptual or misidentified.
  6. Peer & Kendl: the authors' correction shows induced fields are more than ten times smaller, reaching thresholds only within…Against: Most or all reports are phosphenes or afterimages caused by lightning, not objects.
  7. Peer & Kendl: long repetitive discharges can induce magnetic fields comparable to transcranial stimulation near the strike.For: Most or all reports are phosphenes or afterimages caused by lightning, not objects.
  8. Sello et al.: a video of a probable ball was analysed photometrically in Italy.For: Ball lightning is a physical luminous object produced in or near thunderstorms.
  9. Cen et al.: two spectrographs with high-speed cameras recorded a ball for about a second after a ground stroke at 0.9 km.For: Ball lightning is a physical luminous object produced in or near thunderstorms.
  10. Cen et al.: the 2012 ball was recorded by instruments at 0.9 km.Against: Most or all reports are phosphenes or afterimages caused by lightning, not objects.
  11. Asked on this site
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