In Morocco, witnesses saw mysterious lights flashing in the sky before last week’s devastating earthquake. Scientists still can’t explain what caused them.
Let us remember that last Friday a 6.8 magnitude earthquake occurred in the High Atlas Mountains, in eastern Morocco. At least 2,900 people were killed and approximately 5,500 injured. Meanwhile, videos appeared on social media showing bright flashes of light streaking across the sky.
According to Science Alert, the authors of these videos claim that they were filmed immediately before the earthquake. Experts suggest that eyewitnesses may have recorded a rare phenomenon known as “earthquake lights.” However, there is practically no scientific evidence of the existence of this type of lights. However, they are mentioned in the stories and legends of different peoples. There are even a small number of written sources that talk about flashes of light associated with earthquakes that occurred several centuries ago.
For example, The New York Times talks about this type of recordings. According to the publication, ancient sources have different reports of “earthquake fires.” Somewhere they are described as bright flashes that last a few seconds, and somewhere else they are described as fireballs that floated high or low above the ground for several minutes. “People have always been interested in these lights,” says Karen Daniels, a physicist at North Carolina State University. “It’s one of those constant mysteries that you see around you, but never solve.”
“Earthquake lights” were long considered a myth, but with the advent of CCTV cameras and mobile phones, more and more images began to appear. The amount of evidence for the existence of these types of lights is gradually increasing. For example, the camera recorded mysterious bright flashes before the 2021 earthquake in Mexico City, as well as in Japan before the 2022 earthquake.
“No one knows for sure if earthquake lights exist or what causes them,” writes Science Alert. “But if these lights are shown to be associated with powerful seismic activity, some scientists hope they could be used to provide early warning of earthquakes.” tremors.”
