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6 of the strangest light shows on Earth

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Open a cold car door and get shocked, rub a balloon on someone's hair to make it stand up, or run for cover during a lightning storm — we've all had our run-ins with nature's strange electrical powers.

Those displays are familiar, but a whole host of other, weirder electrical phenomena occur, specifically in Earth's atmosphere — including a recent event astronauts photographed from space.

We started looking into other rare or unheard-of light shows that occur in the air around us, and we were surprised by what we found.

Scroll down to see some of the planet's more elusive and mysterious electric, atmospheric phenomena.

1. Sprites



Sprites are giant electrical discharges that "spark" high above storm clouds. They happen regularly but are rarely photographed, since they are so fleeting and giant clouds usually block our view.

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Sprites are red because they excite nitrogen in the atmosphere. Astronaut Scott Kelly snapped a photo of this sprite from the International Space Station in August.

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See the rest of the story at Business Insider

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