Meanings
nounblue jet (plural blue jets)
plural blue jets · alternative blue-jet · alternative bluejet
- astronomyAn upper atmospheric optical phenomenon associated with thunderstorms, a rapidly expanding disk-shaped region of luminosity, lasting less than a thousandth of a second, which occurs high above energetic cloud-to-ground lightning of positive or negative polarity.
Mysterious bluejets can be seen with the naked eye from the ground, but they are rare and difficult to spot.
1999, Patricia Barnes-Svarney, Thomas E. Svarney, Skies of fury: weather weirdness around the world, Simon and Schuster, page 100
Synonyms & antonyms
nounatmospheric discharges (lasting 10 msec) bursting from the tops of giant storm clouds in blue cones that widen as they flash upward
Similar
jetreverse lightning
Broader
atmospheric electricity
Also see
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Translations
Finnish viuhkasalama
- viuhkasalamaoptical phenomenon
French jet bleu
- jet bleuoptical phenomenon
Irish scaird ghorm
- scaird ghormoptical phenomenon
Cite this entry
APA
blue jet. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/blue%20jet
MLA
“blue jet.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/blue%20jet. Accessed November 4, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “blue jet,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/blue%20jet.
Source: blue jet on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.