Ball lightning is a rare and unexplained phenomenon described as luminescent spherical objects that vary from pea-sized to several meters in diameter. Though usually associated with thunderstorms, the
In folklore, a will-o'-the-wisp, or will-o'-wisp, is an atmospheric ghost light seen by travellers at night, especially over bogs, swamps, or marshes.
Ball lightning
…observed phenomenon is reported to last considerably longer than the split-second flash of a lightning bolt and is distinct from St. Elmo's fire and will-o'-the-wisp. Some 20th-century reports describe balls that eventually explode and leave behind an odor of sulfur. Descriptions of ball lightning appear in a variety…
The Will o' the Wisp and the Snake by Hermann Hendrich (1854–1931)
A Japanese rendition of a Russian will-o'-the-wisp
An 1862 oil painting of a will-o'-the-wisp by Arnold Böcklin