Sorry, Ghost Hunters—Will-o’-the-Wisps Are Just Electrified Swamp Farts

For centuries, will-o’-the-wisps—eerie, blue flames floating over marshes—spooked unassuming passersby. The strange aberrations inspired many supernatural interpretations, from fairies and ghosts to, of course, an adaptation as a Pokémon attack move . But as with many seemingly supernatural phenomena, there’s a very tangible, scientific explanation—one scientists long suspected but have only now confirmed.

In a Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences paper published on September 29, researchers explain that tiny lightning sparks jumping between marshy bubbles create will-o’-the-wisps. Marshes and swamps are rich in flammable methane gas, and microscopic interactions between water droplets ignite the gas, according to the paper. In short, the ghostly flames are a product of ch