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9. The Quantum Blue Lightning Experiment
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Researchers have now been able to produce what they describe as "quantum blue lightning" in laboratory settings in a novel experiment at the junction of quantum physics and atmospheric science. Exciting ultra-cold atoms with exact laser pulses generates this artificial lightning, distinguished by its unique blue colour and quantum features. The resultant electrical discharge shows quantum entanglement, a phenomena wherein particles become linked independent of their distance apart. This study may have broad ramifications for our knowledge of both quantum information processing and lightning generation in nature even in its early phases. Scientists hypothesise that quantum processes might be involved in the start and spread of lightning in thunderstorms, therefore clarifying some of the more puzzling features of atmospheric electricity. Moreover, the capacity to create and regulate quantum blue lightning in a lab can propel developments in secure communication systems and quantum computers. As this discipline of research develops, it seems to close the distance between the microscopic domain of quantum physics and the macroscopic world of weather events.
