Brown Mountain Lights Probe

Posted by Jodee Redmond Nov 13, 2006

He plans to install a solar-powered Web cam to capture the strange lights which seem to dance across the area near the Burke-Caldwell county line. As with many unexplained phenomena, stories about what the lights are have been passed down from generation to generation. One such legend is that the lights represent Native American warriors who died in times of war and another is that they are the lights from torches carried by young women in deep mourning.

Canton's theory is that the Brown Mountain lights are, in fact, caused by ball lightning (a glowing gas). This would account for approximately 5% of sightings; the other 95% can be explained as being caused by vehicle headlights or campfires.

He would like to mount the Web cam on a tower overlooking the Linville Gorge. Brown Mountain is to the east of the Gorge and northwest of Charlotte (approximately 75 miles).

Accounts of the Brown Mountain Lights have been written for over 230 years; hopefully Canton's work will bring us a little closer to finally understanding exactly what they are.