First example of ‘double Gigantic Jet’ captured over Puerto Rico

A 'double Gigantic Jet' was captured over Puerto Rico on October 2, 2019, in what could quite possibly be the first record of this phenomenon. 

"In the past, I've captured Gigantic Jet events that split into two, but this is the first time I've seen a Gigantic Jet that fired a second time just as the first jet was beginning to fade out," said photographer Frankie Lucena who captured it on camera. "They shared the same channel of ionization, so it is considered to be a single event."

The strange lightning bolts reached upwards and were about 100 km (328 084 feet) offshore. Lucena was able to photograph the jet from his private Caribbean observatory in Cabo Rojo.

Lucena is a renowned photographer of Gigantic Jets. He has captured 39 events from his observatory since 2010 when he began the work in the field.

Jet lightning is considered to be upper-atmospheric lightning, which refers to a short-lived electrical-breakdown event that happens above the altitudes of common lightning and storm clouds.

Featured image credit: NOAA/GOES-East, RAMMB/CIRA