In China

the incidence of electrical fires

along with the resulting casualties and direct economic losses

ranks first among all types of fires. The poor contact is an important reason which causes the electrical fire. The glowing contact is the phenomenon of luminous and heating caused by the poor contact at the electrical connection

which is one of the important ignition heat sources to induce electrical fires. The temperature of the glowing contact can reach 1400°C

and it has characteristics of small resistance

high concealment

and long duration

which can easily cause fires. This paper summarizes the current research status of the glowing contact in low voltage electrical lines at home and abroad. The generation mechanism

the composition of oxide bridges

and the temperature and spectral characteristics of the glowing contact are summarized. The electrical characteristics of the glowing contact from the perspectives of voltage and current characteristics

and the variation rule of the dynamic resistance are discussed. Finally

the dynamic glow-to-arc transition

arc characteristics and their detection methodologies

and the latest research progress on glowing contact detection are reviewed. The shortcomings of the high frequency characteristics of the glowing contact

its transformation mechanism with the arc and the detection approaches are pointed out. The future research direction is prospected

which is of great significance for improving the theoretical system of the glowing contact mechanism research and guiding the practical application technology.