Mysterious flash lightens night sky in south Russia

What caused the mysterious silent flashes which lit up Russian sky? Weather experts say the lights 'cannot be natural' - and locals are baffled

Mystery silent flash illuminates the sky in Stavropol in southern Russia
The driver was in almost pitch-black conditions when the event happened
Eyewitnesses say the strange glow caused street lights to go out
Experts cannot explain the phenomenon but agree that it is not natural
The light has sparked theories of extraterrestrial activity in the area

By Sam Matthew for MailOnline

A mysterious silent flash which lit up the Russian night sky has baffled people and sparked theories of extraterrestrial activity.

Experts have said the blue and white burst of light, which illuminated Stavropol in southern Russia, is not natural.

The strange glow was not accompanied by any sound, according to witnesses, and made the city's street lights briefly go out.

A mysterious silent flash lit up the night sky in Stavropol, southern Russia, in the early hours of the morning

It was also said to have caused bulbs inside homes to flicker, according to RT.com.

'I was very frightened by what I saw, I was already in bed,' said one woman, according to the website.

'It looked as if something very bright lit up my ceiling.'

The flash was captured on a vehicle dashboard camera at around 12.39am on Monday morning.

According to local reports weather experts and scientists have been unable to explain the strange phenomenon.

But they have agreed the source of the mysterious light was most likely at ground level.

This shows the view from the vehicles dashboard camera moments before the strange glow illuminated the night sky

One local woman said that she was 'very frightened by what I saw,' from the bedroom of her home

The phenomenon was said to have knocked out the city's street lights and caused bulbs to flicker

Theories include that the glow could have been caused by a military exercise, faults in the electricity network, the Northern Lights, an asteroid and even a UFO.

This is not the first time that strange lights have been recorded in Russia. In November last year, an unexplained 11 second flash took place in Yekaterinburg.