Mysterious Helicopter Glitter Halos in Afghanistan Get a Name with a Story

At NPR, a series of mesmerizing pictures of this very specific phenomenon — sand crystals in Afghanistan + helicopter blades = electrostatic fields that spark as they discharge — as well as the story behind why this is coming to be known as the “Kopp-Etchells Effect.” War photographer Michael Yon, after taking these photos, heard of two soldiers who died in the same week: 21-year-old Benjamin Kopp, an American, and 22-year-old British fusilier Joseph Etchells. Yon attended Etchells’ battlefield funeral, and was told that Etchells’ dream was to be cremated and launched into the air via firework; Yon saw Kopp and Etchells listed next to each other in a roster, decided their fates were “already linked up,” and started labeling his photographs with their names.

Photo credit Michael Yon.