Kirlian photography

[ keer-lee-uhn ]

noun

1. a photographic process that supposedly records electrical discharges naturally emanating from living objects, producing an auralike glow surrounding the object on a photographic plate or film with which the object is in direct contact.

Kirlian photography

/ ˈkɜːlɪən /

noun

1. a process that is said to record directly on photographic film the field radiation of electricity emitted by an object to which an electric charge has been applied

Word History and Origins

Origin of Kirlian photography¹

1970–75; after Semyon D. and Valentina K. Kirlian, Russian technicians who developed the process

Word History and Origins

Origin of Kirlian photography¹

C20: named after Semyan D. and Valentina K. Kirlian, Armenian researchers who described the process

Example Sentences

According to the Times, she and Lowe plan to use techniques associated with Kirlian photography, or electrophotography, in which images are produced by a high-voltage power source.

From The Verge

What results is something like a chamber-music equivalent of Kirlian photography: dark, shadowy and indistinct at its core, surrounded by an iridescent glow.

From New York Times

Some psychics claim that in time the aura of a missing limb might be discernible with Kirlian photography.

From Time Magazine Archive

For Moss, the message is that Kirlian photography clearly demonstrates a human aura.

From Time Magazine Archive

Many psychics and their followers believe that paranormal powers may be dependent on mysterious auras or "energy flows," phenomena that they say can be recorded by Kirlian photography.

From Time Magazine Archive