Earthquake Light: What is it and why was it spotted in Delhi?

Yesterday, an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.7 occurred 90 km from Kalafgan, which was felt in Delhi and other parts of northern India. Ashutosh Pathak, a Twitter user, shared a video of "Earthquake Lights" that were observed during the tremors. The earthquake also affected Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, China, Afghanistan, and Kyrgyzstan, according to reports.

According to the United States Geological Survey, people can sometimes see special lights during an earthquake. These lights can look like a glow in the sky, balls of light, sheet lightning, or streamers.

Scientists do not know why the special lights appear during earthquakes. In a video shared by Ashutosh on Twitter, the sky can be seen changing colors during the earthquake, from red to purple. The caption on the video says, "Earthquake Lights seen in Delhi."




Since being posted, the video has received over 356,000 views, and many people are asking about the special lights. One Twitter user explained that the lights are caused by high stress before and during an earthquake. They said that during the earthquake, ions are formed and travel up through cracks in rocks. When these ions reach the atmosphere, they can create plasma, which emits light.

Another person on Twitter mentioned that the sky changes color during an earthquake and that it's called "Earthquake Lights" in geology. There is no clear explanation for these lights, but scientists have many theories.

According to National Geographic, some scientists believe that the lights are caused by electric charges in certain rocks during an earthquake. These lights can appear before or during an earthquake and may be an indicator of a possible earthquake in the area.

FAQs

Q1-What was the magnitude of the earthquake felt?
The magnitude of the earthquake felt in Delhi was 7.7.

Q2-Which areas were affected by the earthquake?
The earthquake affected neighboring areas of Kalafgan, China, Afghanistan, etc.