alt Hacker NewsI once was about 30-50ft from where lightning struck, standing on my porch looking towards my neighbors' house. I didn't see the actual strike happen but I did feel my hair stand on end and then see basically this coming off of the leaves reaching up towards the sky. Little purple tentacles all reaching upwards.
But then I got to the point in the article where they seemed to explain this wasn't visible to the naked eye.... What did I see?
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> I did feel my hair stand on end
I've experienced this when a strike hit power lines above my head. I didn't see the actual strike either - my friend a the other end of the driveway said it was right above me, but that sounds a little hyperbolic to me despite the ringing in my ears. I think we'd both be dead if it were that close. Either way, it gave me a lifelong respect for lightning.
You saw it, the human visual response curve is horribly uneven between individuals. Some can see fairly good into the UV range (especially those who have had cataract surgery,) while some can't even see 415nm violet but can see blue and red-mixed purple all day.
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The article said "nearly invisible to the naked eye" (emphasis mine). Between that and the fact the researchers weren't that close to an actual lightning strike (meaning you presumably would have seen a stronger effect), I would believe you saw something.