Saint Elmo's fire

Saint El·mo's fire  (lmz)

n.

A visible electric discharge on a pointed object, such as the mast of a ship or the wing of an airplane, during an electrical storm. Also called corposant.

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[After Saint Elmo, fourth-century a.d. patron saint of sailors.]

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Saint Elmo's fire  (snt lmz)

A visible and sometimes audible electric discharge projecting from a pointed object, such as the mast of a ship or the wing of an airplane, during an electrical storm. First identified as an electrical phenomenon by Benjamin Franklin in 1749, St. Elmo's fire is a bluish-white plasma caused by the release of electrons in a strong electric field (200 or more volts per cm); the electrons have enough energy to ionize atoms in the air and cause them to glow. The phenomenon appears near pointed objects because electrical fields generated by charged surfaces are strongest where curves are sharpest. It is named after St. Elmo, the patron saint of mariners, as the phenomenon was often observed by sailors during thunderstorms at sea. See also lightning rod.

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

Saint Elmo's fire - an electrical discharge accompanied by ionization of surrounding atmosphere corona discharge, corposant, electric glow, Saint Elmo's light, Saint Ulmo's fire, Saint Ulmo's light, St. Elmo's fire, corona arc, electric arc, electric discharge, spark, discharge - electrical conduction through a gas in an applied electric field