Key Takeaways
1. A stunning red halo was photographed over the Italian Alps by Valter Binotto on November 17, 2025.
2. The red halo is a natural phenomenon known as a transient luminous event (ELVE).
3. ELVEs occur due to strong lightning strikes creating an electromagnetic pulse in the ionosphere.
4. The specific halo in Binotto’s photo resulted from an intense negative lightning strike.
5. Binotto captured this moment using a Sony A7S camera from 300 km away, and he previously photographed a similar event in 2023.
The sky is full of surprises and wonder. Each year, events like comets and asteroids give us spectacular views. Recently, a photographer took a stunning picture of a red halo appearing over the Italian Alps.
A Rare Capture
This remarkable image was snapped by Valter Binotto on the night of November 17, 2025. The most striking feature of this photo is the enormous red halo. Before jumping to conclusions about its origin, it’s key to understand that this is a completely natural event. It is known as a transient luminous event, or ELVE.
Understanding the Phenomenon
NOAA explains that this event occurs due to strong lightning strikes that produce an electromagnetic pulse in the ionosphere. Valter Binotto mentioned that the red halo in his photo was a result of a very intense negative lightning strike, which happened as the electromagnetic pulse interacted with that layer of the atmosphere.
A Moment Captured
Using his Sony A7S camera equipped with a 20 mm f/1.8 lens, Binotto was situated 300 km away from the thunderstorm when he captured this fleeting moment, lasting only a millisecond. This isn’t the first time he has caught such a phenomenon; he photographed a similar red halo under comparable conditions in 2023.
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