Mysterious electrical phenomena during tornadoes

[Casuarina Head]

I have to agree.

I've only heard good/positive things about Adam Lucio in the past. However, I'm an extremely skeptical person by nature. This type of phenomena ostensibly being captured on video is something I'm going to have to see with my own two eyes before rendering an opinion. For a variety of reasons something like this is going to require serious validation before being accepted by some -- myself included.

The phenomenon, or “light” (orb), in question is circled in red, near the lower centre-right of the above frame. Between 4:08–12 the orb moves rightward before fading out.

Yeah, I don't see that video as being determinative. There's a number of alternative theories and explanations that would have to be overcome before I would think the most likely source of the light in question is the headlights from a vehicle caught in a tornado's circulation.

As the above frame and footage show, the orb was definitely not a vehicle, and was also moving too rapidly to be a drone, given its distance from the camera, plus scale.

Y'know, we saw a similar weird light in the Arabi tornado iirc, part of me almost wonders if we're dealing with some sort of odd electrical phenomenon or something

This sort of phenomenon actually does not appear to be particularly uncommon, especially in intense tornadoes. If I recall correctly footage showed “orbs” around the Moore tornado in 2013, but unfortunately I cannot locate the original clip, so please do not quote me on this. Anyway, I started this thread to discuss an illustrate an interesting phenomenon that showed up recently during last night’s devastating tornado in Rolling Fork MS. In discussing this sensitive topic feel free to post videos and assorted data from other tornadoes as well.

 

[Lake Martin EF4]

The phenomenon, or “light” (orb), in question is circled in red, near the lower centre-right of the above frame. Between 4:08–12 the orb moves rightward before fading out.



As the above frame and footage show, the orb was definitely not a vehicle, and was also moving too rapidly to be a drone, given its distance from the camera, plus scale.



This sort of phenomenon actually does not appear to be particularly uncommon, especially in intense tornadoes. If I recall correctly footage showed “orbs” around the Moore tornado in 2013, but unfortunately I cannot locate the original clip, so please do not quote me on this. Anyway, I started this thread to discuss an illustrate an interesting phenomenon that showed up recently during last night’s devastating tornado in Rolling Fork MS. In discussing this sensitive topic feel free to post videos and assorted data from other tornadoes as well.

I believe similar phenomenon was reported in Blackwell, OK in 1955. The described phenomenon sounds a wee bit too....intense to be power flashes.

 

[Casuarina Head]

I believe similar phenomenon was reported in Blackwell, OK in 1955. The described phenomenon sounds a wee bit too...intense to be power flashes.

The big difference between Blackwell and Rolling Fork, however, is that the former was rather clearly attributable to lightning. There were numerous, extremely bright discharges that were well documented by instrumentation in the vicinity of the supercell. Ball lightning and St. Elmo’s fire were among the phenomena observed. Among the most intriguing observations during Blackwell was of a brilliant, pinwheel-like “beacon” that circled the top of the tornado, heading rightward. But otherwise most observations clearly described intense lightning. By contrast, the video above during the Rolling Fork tornado shows a faint but clearly discernible orb that flutters past the tornado, so in this case lightning is definitely not involved, nor is a drone or vehicle, given the distance and scale at stake.

 

[Taylor Campbell]

The object is lofted from the base and rotated around the tornado. Vehicles get hurled by violent tornadoes. Why is it hard to believe that the object isn’t likely that?

 

[Peter Griffin]

For me personally it's just hard to believe a car wouldn't be rolled and flipped around more in a tornado circulation. I would think it have a flickering appearance if it was a vehicle as the lights turn away from the camera. But who knows tornadoes can do crazy things. With that being said I don't think it was some electric phenomena either. Genuinely have no idea what it is.

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[Penitentes]

Ball lightning has never been conclusively proven to even exist. Cars... have. I don't know what the lights were but I would also lean heavily away from electrical phenomena.

 

[CheeselandSkies]

I think Max Olson has the best video of it I've seen thus far. Around the 1:40 mark. "Something" illuminated gets lofted off the ground, whipped around the tornado to camera right, goes behind it and then emerges on the left much higher up.

 

[Equus]

I have no doubt that violent tornadoes carry cars quite a ways, but every video I have ever seen of cars being carried show a chaotic tumbling motion instead of a steady carry around the funnel - and usually they're vaulted out pretty fast at high speed - so you'd think there would be major fluctuations in light intensity instead of a very steady glow; I really don't know anything else that would be that bright at such a distance as most small lights would just not be visible at that distance imo, so I'm really not sure what we have there unless it's some weird phenomenon. Certainly could be a car but again the motion would be very unusual for such a non symmetric piece of large debris. I fear we will never know unless surveys find something weird. I was wondering if it could be some sort of electrical phenomenon since the one from Arabi looked a lot like this only a bit less bright and it would definitely be odd to have two vehicles carried very steadily in very different types of tornadoes (and I don't think Arabi was confirmed to have carried cars very far/high)

 

[Casuarina Head]

I think Max Olson has the best video of it I've seen thus far. Around the 1:40 mark. "Something" illuminated gets lofted off the ground, whipped around the tornado to camera right, goes behind it and then emerges on the left much higher up.

This is the best view that I have seen thus far. The footage definitely seems to put the “drone” theory to rest as well. The relatively constancy of the orb’s luminosity, along with its spasmodic acceleration and deceleration, is actually very reminiscent of the behaviour that is ascribed to so-called UFOs (no, not speculative, ET-piloted spacecraft, but the technically valid “unidentified flying objects”). The movement almost seems to suggest quasi-sentience at times. The object seems to travel surprisingly large distances in single bounds, for instance. As @Equus mentioned, the object also moves too steadily to be a manned vehicle or probe of any sort, especially at the distance under consideration and in light of the object’s brightness in each frame.

I have no doubt that violent tornadoes carry cars quite a ways, but every video I have ever seen of cars being carried show a chaotic tumbling motion instead of a steady carry around the funnel - and usually they're vaulted out pretty fast at high speed - so you'd think there would be major fluctuations in light intensity instead of a very steady glow; I really don't know anything else that would be that bright at such a distance as most small lights would just not be visible at that distance imo, so I'm really not sure what we have there unless it's some weird phenomenon.

The bolded portions succinctly express and account for my curiosity in this case. This “object,” regardless of its identity or provenance, in no way seems to be compatible with either a vehicle or a drone, especially at nighttime and during inclement weather. A small but very bright, distant orb, clearly moving erratically yet somewhat stealthily, it definitely is. The fact is that this kind of phenomenon has been frequently observed and even remarked upon in the presence of significant tornadoes and arguably deserves more attention than it has been given to date. I think there are many aspects of physics that could account for unusual phenomena, e.g., gravitational fluctuations in proximity to low-pressure regions that may open a “door” to otherwise-invisible light spectra.

Certainly could be a car but again the motion would be very unusual for such a non symmetric piece of large debris. I fear we will never know unless surveys find something weird. I was wondering if it could be some sort of electrical phenomenon since the one from Arabi looked a lot like this only a bit less bright and it would definitely be odd to have two vehicles carried very steadily in very different types of tornadoes (and I don't think Arabi was confirmed to have carried cars very far/high)

^ As I suggested above, I think that tornadoes, among other severe-weather phenomena, could interact with localised topographic and even electromagnetic anomalies to yield gravitational fluctuations that “bend” the visible spectra and allow observers temporary access to otherwise-invisible realms, albeit on a small scale. If one believes in the existence of other dimensions, then maybe witnesses are even being granted rare access to “invisible” worlds, strange though the occurrence may seem, which is not entirely surprising in light of fluid dynamics’ physical aspects and concepts such as string-theory. Given the complexities involved true scientists should certainly maintain a healthy degree of humility and willingness to acknowledge the unknown.

 

[JayF]

I believe this is a car or vehicle of some sort and not a light phenomenon. We see this object clearly picked up from the ground and whirled around the tornado at a quick rate of speed. The lights flicker as debris more than likely is moving between the object and the camera, and then as it gets back to the right side of the tornado, it loses the updraft that was holding it and drops back to earth. But it is hard to see the drop back to earth as whatever the object was turned away from the camera, and the lights are no longer visible. Where ever it dropped, clearly there would be evidence of it, but it would be difficult to know if it was normal tornado damage or this vehicle. I hope we get some data somewhere or someone comes forward with more information.

 

[JayF]

In this story, we see a weak tornado, not given its actual rating, but with people standing in the parking lot, it could not have been big. So if a weak tornado can lift a car 5 feet into the air, why is it implausible that a car with an occupant in it be lifted 100's, if not thousands of feet into the air?

Suspected tornado picks up Jeep with occupants in Oregon parking lot

A rare suspected tornado in Oregon swept across a parking lot at a community college in the city of Eugene, lifting up a Jeep with two people inside and damaging three other vehicles, officials said on Wednesday.

www.reuters.com

 

[Gail]

In this story, we see a weak tornado, not given its actual rating, but with people standing in the parking lot, it could not have been big. So if a weak tornado can lift a car 5 feet into the air, why is it implausible that a car with an occupant in it be lifted 100's, if not thousands of feet into the air?

Suspected tornado picks up Jeep with occupants in Oregon parking lot

A rare suspected tornado in Oregon swept across a parking lot at a community college in the city of Eugene, lifting up a Jeep with two people inside and damaging three other vehicles, officials said on Wednesday.

www.reuters.com

We had an EF-3 come through our town a few years ago, and it lifted a school bus onto our school’s roof. I could see this scenario play out.

 

[Gail]

There’s pics and info on that. Our home is across the street from the school. That was a very scary day huddled in our bathroom closet having a “flashlight adventure reading session” with my young boys to keep them calm (both are now college aged). It sounded like a waterfall outside with a whirling sound.

 

[thundersnow]

In this story, we see a weak tornado, not given its actual rating, but with people standing in the parking lot, it could not have been big. So if a weak tornado can lift a car 5 feet into the air, why is it implausible that a car with an occupant in it be lifted 100's, if not thousands of feet into the air?

Suspected tornado picks up Jeep with occupants in Oregon parking lot

A rare suspected tornado in Oregon swept across a parking lot at a community college in the city of Eugene, lifting up a Jeep with two people inside and damaging three other vehicles, officials said on Wednesday.

www.reuters.com

I recall footage of a tornado years ago, probably as far back as the 1990s, when boxcars or perhaps it was 18 wheeler rigs were picked up and lofted high up around the circulation. I believe that may have been in Plano, TX, if memory serves correctly.

So, I think there’s little doubt it’s possible. I just think these videos out of Rolling Fork are inconclusive on what that was rotating around up there. Could that have been a vehicle with its lights on? Maybe, but we’re guessing. I just don’t know what else it could be.

 

[Lake Martin EF4]

Welp I think this puts the speculation to rest


EDIT: Yep that is indeed a car


EDIT 2: Pause exactly at 1:52 at Max Olson's video and you will see what is without doubt a pair of headlights. Earlier you see what looks like the same car getting picked up. Yeah case closed.

 

[NorthGaWeather]

Welp I think this puts the speculation to rest


EDIT: Yep that is indeed a car


EDIT 2: Pause exactly at 1:52 at Max Olson's video and you will see what is without doubt a pair of headlights. Earlier you see what looks like the same car getting picked up. Yeah case closed.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t close the case. We’re still looking at the same blurry videos. I’ll wait for more conclusive views or actual ground truth.

Of course it’s plausible for this to be a car, but nothing is definitive and we may never know.

 

[NorthGaWeather]

I recall footage of a tornado years ago, probably as far back as the 1990s, when boxcars or perhaps it was 18 wheeler rigs were picked up and lofted high up around the circulation. I believe that may have been in Plano, TX, if memory serves correctly.

So, I think there’s little doubt it’s possible. I just think these videos out of Rolling Fork are inconclusive on what that was rotating around up there. Could that have been a vehicle with its lights on? Maybe, but we’re guessing. I just don’t know what else it could be.

Completely agree.

There have been several tornadoes with documented instances of vehicles being lofted to a significant degree. Of course that’s what this could be, but we have to prove it.

 

[Casuarina Head]

Welp I think this puts the speculation to rest


EDIT: Yep that is indeed a car


EDIT 2: Pause exactly at 1:52 at Max Olson's video and you will see what is without doubt a pair of headlights. Earlier you see what looks like the same car getting picked up. Yeah case closed.

@Lake Martin EF4 I would look more closely at the movement in the first four seconds of the clip. The “orb” clearly flits about like a distant firefly, even looping and zigzagging about. The movement is too erratic and precipitous to mirror the aerodynamics associated with an airborne vehicle orbiting the tornado. As mentioned above, the characteristics of the “headlights” change too appreciably between frames to conclusively reflect a vehicle rather than distortion. The following sequence from the aforementioned Reddit thread confirms this:

Furthermore, the following contributor pointed out that the extreme velocities coincident with the power-flashes would have effectively shredded any drone in the immediate vicinity of the circulation.

@Equus, I would be very interested in hearing your feedback on this. I truly believe that unusual phenomena may have been at work here.

 

[JayF]

@Lake Martin EF4 I would look more closely at the movement in the first four seconds of the clip. The “orb” clearly flits about like a distant firefly, even looping and zigzagging about. The movement is too erratic and precipitous to mirror the aerodynamics associated with an airborne vehicle orbiting the tornado. As mentioned above, the characteristics of the “headlights” change too appreciably between frames to conclusively reflect a vehicle rather than distortion. The following sequence from the aforementioned Reddit thread confirms this:

Furthermore, the following contributor pointed out that the extreme velocities coincident with the power-flashes would have effectively shredded any drone in the immediate vicinity of the circulation.

@Equus, I would be very interested in hearing your feedback on this. I truly believe that unusual phenomena may have been at work here.

There is no way that this is a firefly. There are two different videos from the exact vehicle that show the same movement around the tornado. If it had been a firefly, it would have had different angels and wouldn't have appeared to follow the airflow direction of the tornado.

 

[thundersnow]

There is no way that this is a firefly. There are two different videos from the exact vehicle that show the same movement around the tornado. If it had been a firefly, it would have had different angels and wouldn't have appeared to follow the airflow direction of the tornado.

I didn’t take him to be suggesting it was a firefly... just comparing the movement to that of a firefly.