Hessdalen Lights Phenomenon: What Causes the Mysterious Glowing Orbs in Norway?

All over the world, various groups of people have been reporting odd lights that move across the night sky. Some have been explained by science, while others have remained mysterious. One is the rare and unusual atmospheric lights observed in Norway, known as the Hessdalen Lights.

What are Hessdalen Lights?

The Hessdalen lights are unidentified lights observed in a 7.5-mile (12-kilometer) stretch of the Hessdalen valley in rural central Norway. This mysterious optical phenomenon has been periodically seen since the 1930s.

There are also reported daytime sightings when the orbs look like metallic objects in the sky. At its peak, there could be about 20 reported sightings a week.

Some flashing orbs can be as huge as cars moving gently through the sky for up to two hours, while others flash white or blue and drift through the valley, only to disappear in seconds. The fastest recorded speed was 18,641 miles (30,000 kilometers) an hour.

During the first decade of sightings, many photographs of the aerial light event were taken. However, the lights were difficult to capture on film due to long distances and fast movements in the dark.

Theories Surrounding the Optical Phenomenon

Many efforts have been made to explain the Hessdalen Lights phenomenon. Some hypothesized that it could be airplanes or distant railways reflected in the sky, a form of a lightning ball, and cosmic objects such as planets or meteors. However, the lights' speed and behavior eliminated all such theories.

Interestingly, the Hessdalen lights do not appear when there is lightning. Because of this, electrical engineer Bjorn Gitle Hauge suggests that the event is electric and optical. He proposed that the valley's shape, climate, and geology generate a massive electric charge, and strong winds dash off the static electricity on the mountains.

Other experts suggest that the lights are generated by radioactivity and carbon decay in the atmosphere. They propose that the lights are made from 'dusty plasma' that contains ionized dust particles. It is also based on the idea that gas bubbles erupt from the ground, pick up dust, and enter the atmosphere as a glowing ball of light.

Since 1982, computer engineer Erling Strand from Ostfold University has searched for the physics behind this phenomenon. Strand also investigated the phenomenon for the first time using radiometric, magnetometric, and radar instrumentation.

Strand set up Project Hessdalen to unite experts trying to solve the mystery of the strange orbs. His team noticed a slight fluctuation in the magnetic field of the valley before the formation of lights. Meanwhile, there was nothing unusual in its radioactivity and seismic activity.

On the other hand, Jader Monari from the Institute of Radio Astronomy in Medicina, Italy, believes the unusual lights could be brought by a natural 'battery' buried deep underground. This battery is produced by metallic minerals that react with a sulfurous river that runs through it. If this theory is proven correct, it could pave the way for a new energy storage method.