Ball lightning in nature and in the laboratory

As with unidentified flying objects, the origins as well as the existence of ball lightning have, in the past, been extremely controversial, with some authorities insisting that such a phenomenon did not exist. However, not only has recent work corroborated the existence of ball lightning, but many data, both analytical and experimental, have been produced. Potential applications may lie in the fields of thermonuclear power production, crystal growing, and pulsed-light communication. The author is with the Bendix Corporation, in the United States.