I’m familiar with looking at lights. Usually, what you’re describing is more of a blind spot that develops where the light lingered. I’m not looking at the light directly, either. It’s usually noticed when looking at a street normally with a streetlight above.

Instead, this is like a bright streak that flashes across my sight. Not a lingering streak, not a burn, not a blindspot. Just like a repeat of the streak. Due to the flick nature of humans changing eye targets, the streak isn’t even perceived at first when I move my eyes. They snap to the next target. But the repeat streak has some motion to it, though very fast. I considered mechanical means of triggering receptors, but it matches the placement and direction of the source. If I turn my head and do the same exact eye movement, the repeat streak moves as well.

I spend a lot of time in the dark. I’ve tried, but I can’t find a pattern. I initially thought it was a rhodopsin artifact (the chemical that dopes your receptors for dark adaptation over ~20 minutes without blue/UV), but I’ve had it happen immediately when going into darkness. Maybe my home isn’t as bright as I think it is? But still, it’s not a permanent feature and only works for a few minutes once I notice it.