A rare "gigantic jet" of lightening that occurs above thunderstorm was reportedly to have taken place over eastern China.

The incident occurred on August 12, 2010 as scientists spotted the enormous flash that spanned from the top of a thunderstorm way up to the edge of the atmosphere more than 50 miles above the ground. The finding was published recently in the Chinese Science Bulletin.

Researchers were able to get a good look at the storm and analyze it using multiple data sets including low-light level observation, lightning location network, Doppler radar data and infrared weather images.

"This is the first report from mainland China," said lead researcher Jing Yang, an atmospheric scientist with the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing.

Yang added that her team had possibly seen another gigantic jet in the same area during a different thunderstorm, but said they needed to recheck the data to confirm.

"It's not as clear as this one if it is a gigantic jet or not," she said.

The lightening were allegedly seen taking different number of forms, including orange flashes called sprites and blue jets, which take on a conical form. Scientists also noted of "tree jets" and "carrot jets" forming other shapes.

Scientists believe these gigantic jets balance out the electrical charge during thunderstorms by discharging the ionosphere, the part of the upper atmosphere filled with charged particles.