One of the first records of earthquake lights is during 869 Sanriku earthquake , described as " strange lights in the sky " in Nihon Sandai Jitsuroku . The lights are reported to appear while an earthquake is occurring , although there are reports of lights before or after earthquakes , such as reports concerning the 1975 Kalapana earthquake . They are reported to have shapes similar to those of the auroras , with a white to bluish hue , but occasionally they have been reported having a wider color spectrum . The luminosity is reported to be visible for several seconds , but has also been reported to last for tens of minutes . Accounts of viewable distance from the epicenter varies : in the 1930 Idu earthquake , lights were reported up to from the epicenter . Earthquake lights were reportedly spotted in Tianshui , Gansu , approximately north-northeast of the 2008 Sichuan earthquake 's epicenter
2008 Sichuan earthquake
2008 Sichuan earthquake
Earthquake light