fulgurite means glass formed by a lightning strike melting sand or other material. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 91 out of 100.
Why “fulgurite” is a great word
FULGURITE — [Noun] A brittle, glassy tube or crust of fused silica formed where lightning strikes and vitrifies sand or rock. From Latin *fulgur* ("lightning") + the English suffix *-ite* (used to form names of minerals and rocks), modelled on German *Fulgurit*. Unlike "obsidian," a volcanic glass born of terrestrial fire, or "tektite," a glass forged by meteoric impact, a fulgurite is the fossilized scar of a purely atmospheric event. It is a hollow, branching ghost in the dune, a sinuous cavity lined with vitreous froth, a delicate root of glass tracing where the earth was momentarily turned to plasma—a monument to a force so violent and transient that it could only leave its signature in silence.
Etymology
From Latin fulgur + -ite.
noun
- Glass formed by a lightning strike melting sand or other material.