Shinmoedake volcano, 2011
Shinmoedake volcano, 2011
Sakurajima volcano, 2013
Sakurajima volcano, 2013
Eyjafjallajökull volcano, 2010
Eyjafjallajökull volcano, 2010
Puyehue volcano, 2011
Puyehue volcano, 2011
Dirty thunderstorms
A dirty thunderstorm (also, Volcanic lightning) is a weather phenomenon that occurs when lightning is produced in a volcanic plume. A study in the journal Science indicated that electrical charges are generated when rock fragments, ash, and ice particles in a volcanic plume collide and produce static charges, just as ice particles collide in regular thunderstorms.