Stunning red lights falling from space recently caught the world's eye, sparking guesses about alien signals. But NASA and scientists say these flashes are red sprites, rare and ghostly lightning above storm clouds. A sharp photo by French contributor Nicolas Escurat, shared by NASA’s Spritacular project, shows a bright red flash glowing above a thundercloud. Red sprites form 50 to 90 kilometers above storms. Unlike normal lightning that strikes downward, sprites shoot upwards during strong thunderstorms. They look like red pillars or jellyfish with orange tops and faint blue roots reaching down into clouds. Researchers say red sprites happen when very strong lightning hits the ground. This disrupts the electric field above the storm and sends a burst of energy into the upper atmosphere, lighting up nitrogen molecules and creating the red glow. Sprites use cold plasma, so they appear ghostly and different from the hot, usual lightning. They are tricky to photograph and spot. NASA astronaut Nichole Ayers took a photo of a giant red sprite on 3 July 2025 from the International Space Station, drawing new spotlight on them. In May 2022, over 100 sprites rose above the southern Tibetan Plateau, the biggest recorded event in South Asia. Italian photographer Giacomo Venturin caught sprite clusters lighting up storm clouds over Austria from Monte Tomba. These stunning natural light shows remind us of the Earth’s powerful, colorful atmosphere, not visitors from outer space.