reverse lightning

1. A flash of light in the sky caused by an electrical discharge from the Earth's surface to a cloud. Reverse lightning is so called because lightning typically occurs between clouds or travels from a cloud to the Earth's surface.

2. Also called return stroke

3. See note at lightning

Example Sentences

In his many careers — activist, journalist, playwright, novelist, curmudgeon — he had served as a kind of reverse lightning rod, drawing out homophobia from American society to light up the sky with danger.

From New York Times