Satellite imagery from Aug. 27 showing blue lighting strikes inside Tropical Storm Idalia has been shared on social media alongside false claims that they are evidence of laser attacks or Direct Energy Weapons (DEW).
We are being terrorized on the daily.”The video does show lightning during Idalia and not man-made lasers or weapons.
Examples of previous satellite imagery by CIRA depicting lighting artificially colored in blue amid tropical storms are viewable (here), (here), (here).
Reuters previously addressed false claims of lasers or direct energy weapons, or DEWs, causing extreme weather events (here), (here) and explosions (here).
The blue lighting strikes viewable in the satellite imagery are a result of false color used by weather mapping organizations for visibility purposes.
Persons:
Idalia, “, Matt Rogers, CIRA, Rogers, Read
Organizations:
Energy Weapons, Reuters, Outreach, Communications, Cooperative Institute for Research, Colorado State University, Environmental
Locations:
Florida, Bend