It comes as no shock that a potentially new type of volcanic lightning had long eluded scientists: The bolts can be as short as about 3 feet (1 meter) long and last just a few milliseconds.

But advanced instruments and a two-month heads-up allowed researchers to finally confirm the "teeny little sparks" during a recent eruption of Alaska's Redoubt Volcano.

When Redoubt first began to rumble in late January 2009, volcanic seismologist Steve McNutt and colleagues scrambled to install various instruments near the volcano's vents.

Their quick efforts yielded unprecedented data when the mountain finally blew its top in March 2009.

McNutt,