St. Elmo's fire
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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St. Elmo's fire (also St. Elmo's light) is a weather phenomenon in which luminous plasma is created by a coronal discharge from a sharp or pointed object in a strong electric field in the atmosphere (such as those generated by thunderstorms or created by a volcanic eruption).
St. Elmo's fire is named after St. Erasmus of Formia (also called St. Elmo, one of the two Italian names for St. Erasmus, the other being St. Erasmo), the patron saint of sailors. The phenomenon sometimes appeared on ships at sea during thunderstorms and was regarded by sailors with religious awe for its glowing ball of light, accounting for the name. Sailors may have considered St. Elmo's fire as a good omen (as a sign of the presence of their patron saint).
See also
- Ball lightning
- British Airways Flight 9
- Earthquake light
- Foo fighter, WWII UFO observations
- Hessdalen Lights
- List of plasma (physics) articles
- Naga fireballs, rising from Mekong river
- Sprite (lightning)
- St. Elmo's Fire (film)
- Triboelectric effect
- Will-o'-the-wisp
