The lightning hypothesis for Venus's ashen light has fallen out of favor because the lightning does not generate enough light to be observed.
Notes on verification
Corroborated by multiple independent astronomy sources and mission data (Akatsuki, Cassini) showing lightning flashes would be too faint or undetectable, consistent with Wikipedia's claim. [tier=unverified indep_score=0.3 clusters=3 claim_tier=notable] [rescored 2026-09-15: curated origin-host map (PR #65); unclassified hosts no longer scored as aggregators]
Sources
- Ashen light (wikipedia)
- https://www.skyatnightmagazine.com/space-science/ashen-light-mystery-venus-dark-side-glow (corroboration)
- https://explainingscience.org/2025/11/15/the-mystery-of-the-ashen-light-of-venus/ (corroboration)
- https://www.science-frontiers.com/sf137/sf137p02.htm (corroboration)